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Ancient  Jerusalem.  Drawn  after  Ordnance  Survey  by  Captain  Wilson. 

The  map  shows  a possible  location  of  Calvary,  the  Via  Dolorosa,  the 
(Jastle  Antonia,  and  the  Pretorium,  Herod’s  Palace  Aceldama;  the  traditional 
site  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  and  of  the  Via  Dolorosa. 


O High  PrieBt'8  House.  8.  Agrippa’s  Palace. 

1.  Temple  of  Solomon,  ) 9.  Acra. 

2.  Palace  of  Soiommi,  y ^ ■Pn^ar>a  Pool  Amygdalon,  or  Pool  of  Heze- 

8.  Added  on  by  Herod.  J raiace. 

4.  The  Tower  Antonia.  . 11.  Herod’s  Castle  and  Palace. 

5.  Antonia  (,The  Castle).  12.  Bethesda. 

(3.  Cloisters  joining  Antonia  toTemple  13.  Bridge  built  by  Herod. 

7.  Xystus.  14.  Lower  City. 

Jesus  was  first  led  from  Gethsemane  to  the  High  Priest’s  house  []  (page  7Sb 
wl'.ich  stood  ill  the  uppei’ city  of  Josephus.  Then  to  the  Council  Caamber  ad- 
joining the  Temple,  marked  []1  (page  96).  Here  the  trials  before  the  Sanhedrim 
took  place.  He  was  then  led  to  Fort  Antonia  (Marked  5,)  (page  U6).  Here  the 
trials  before  Pilate  took  place.  He  was  then  led  to  Herod’s  Palace  (Marked  11,) 
(pare  1-8).  Here  He  was  outraged  by  Herod.  Ho  was  then  led  back  to  Fort  An- 
tonia (]^igol  4).  Here  He  was  scourged  and  delivered  up  to  death,  and  thence 
was  He  ;ed  out  to  Calvary. 


MAY  27  1919 


^*)Ne  have  not  followed  Cunningly  Devised  Fables.” 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

A CRITICAL  EXPOSITION 


THAT  IS 


Told  us  in  the  New  Testament  Narratives  Concerning  the 
Trial,  Condemnation  and  Death  of 

: Jesus  of  NazaTieth,  .. 


— BY — 

REV.  H.  M.  P/^YNTER,  A.  M., 

AUTHOR  OF 

'The  Shadow  on  the  Hearth,”  “A  Kenovated  Earth,”  “Our 
Duty  in  the  Present  Crisis,”  “Brief  History  of 
THE  War  in  Missouri,”  “The  Holy 
Supper,”  “The  Holy  Sor- 
row,” &c. 


SECOND  EDITION. 
CHICAGO. 


C.  H.  W'hiting,  137  Wabash  Avenue. 
1883. 


Entered  according  to  the  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1883,  by 
KEV.  H.  M.  PAYNTER, 

In  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


GALLOP  BROS.,  PRINTERS,  fl5  S.  HALSTED  ST..  CHICAGO, 


z 

o 

6?^ 


THE  HOLY  DEATH, 


? 

O) 

ryj 

5 


ii 


PREFACE. 


Christianity  rests  on  a historical  basis.  The  traces 
which  it  has  left  on  Jewish  and  heathen  literature,  are 
too  many  and  deep  to  allow  its  reality  to  be  called  in 
question.  The  Talmud  of  Babylon  gives  the  names  of 
three  of  the  Apostles,  Matthew,  Thaddeus  and  James. 
The  Talmud  of  Jerusalem  says:  ^‘The  name  of  Jesus  is 
forbidden.  It  were  better  to  die  than  to  hear  that  name.” 
In  defaming,  it  admits  His  miraculous  power,  or,  at 
least.  His  claim  to  it.  Josephus,  in  the  annals  of  his 
times,  speaks  of  a movement  which  he  cannot  under- 
stand, and  to  which  he  is  indifferent.  But  he  recogniz- 
es the  fact.  His  statement  about  James,  the  Lord’s 
brother,  (Ant.  xix,  9, 1)  has  not  been  questioned : ^‘Annas, 
the  high  priest,  assembled  the  Sanhedrim,  and  brought 
before  it  James,  the  brother  of  Him  who  is  called 
Christ,  and  having  charged  him  with  breaking  the  laws, 
delivered  him  over  to  be  stoned.”  And  his  well-known 
passage  (Ant.  xviii,  3,  3)  though  questioned  by  some,  is 
recognized  as  authentic  by  Renan : “In  those  times  ap- 
peared Jesus,  a wise  man,  the  author  of  extraordinary 
acts,  having  for  disciples  those  who  love  truth.  He 
gathered  around  Him  many  Jews  and  Greeks.  They 
did  not  renounce  the  love  they  had  pledged  to  Him, 
even  after  Pilate  had  condemned  Him  to  the  cross,  at 
the  demand  of  the  chiefs  of  the  nation.  The  body  of 
the  Christians  who  have  called  themselves  by  His  name, 
have  remained  faithful  to  Him  to  this  day.”  While 
the  Jews  reject  Him  as  Messiah,  there  is,  perhaps,  not 


Ill 


an  intelligent  one  who  denies  the  reality  of  His  exis- 
tence, and  the  reason  and  manner  of  His  death. 

The  heathen  testimonies  are  unassailable.  Pliny, 
proconsul  to  Bythinia,  speaks  (Lib.  x,  Ep.  98)  of  Chris- 
tianity as  a fact,  and  points  out  the  vital  connectiou 
between  it  and  its  author,  Jesus:  ^^They  sing  a hymn  to 
Christ,  as  if  to  God.”  Seutonius,  historian  of  the 
Csesars,  though  confounding  Christians  with  Jews, 
recognizes  the  existence  of  this  new  power,  and  links  its 
beginning  to  Christ.  (Claudius,  25.)  And  Tacitus,  in 
a passage,  which  Gibbon  declares  ‘‘the  most  skeptical 
criticism  is  bound  to  respect,”  declares  that,  “in  A.  D, 
65,  the  Christians  in  the  great  city  of  Eome  formed  a 
party  large  enough  to  attract  attention;  and  that  their 
author  was  Christ,  who  had  been  put  to  death  by  cru- 
cifixion, in  the  reign  of  Tiberius  Nero,  and  by  order  ot 
the  procurator,  Pontius  Pilate.”  (Annals  xv,  44.) 

A custom,  perhaps  an  imperial  order,  required  pro- 
vincial governors  to  transmit  to  Rome  an  account  of  all 
important  proceedings.  It  is  not  improbable  that  Pilate 
sent  to  Rome  an  account  of  the  trial  and  condemnation  of 
Jesus.  If  so,  the  record  has  never  been  found.  But 
it  is  mentioned,  as  a fact,  by  Justin  Martyr  in  his  address 
to  the  Emperor,  Pius  Antoninus,  by  Tertullian,  in  his 
Apology,  and  by  Eusebius,  in  his  History.  The  last 
writer  adds  that  the  papers  included  an  account  of  the 
Resurrection  of  J esus. 

The  authenticity  and  genuineness  of  the  Gospels, 
though  violently  assailed,  are  too  strongly  supported  to 
be  set  aside.  But  no  criticism  has  yet  dared  to  deny 
the  genuineness  and  authenticity  of  Paul’s  letter  to  the 
Romans,  and  his  first  one  to  the  Corinthians.  These 
must  have  been  written  before  his  imprisonment.  This 
was  about  A.  D.  62.  They  could  not  have  been  wu’it- 
ten  later  than  A.  D.  62,  perhaps  as  early  as  A.  D.  50, 


iv 


tliat  is,  from  twenty  to  thirty  years  after  Jesus’  death. 
ITie  facts  he  mentions  were  well-known.  He,  himself, 
had  been  preaching  them  for  many  years.  To  these 
undeniable  facts  he  appeals,  as  proofs  of  his  statements. 
These  facts  embrace  the  trial,  condemnation,  death  and 
resurrection  of  Jesus.  And  they  are  appealed  to  within, 
at  the  outside,  thirty  years  after  their  occurrence. 

Our  present  study,  therefore — and  this  remark,  ap- 
plied also  to  the  two  previous  pamphlets — is  truly 
called  a historical  study.  We  have  the  facts.  Let  us 
seek  to  find  out  their  import  and  bearing. 

As  the  ground  has  often  been  gone  over,  I need  not 
cover  the  pages  with  authorities.  Whenever  I have 
obtained  anything  that  would  help  me  to  a clearer  or 
fuller  understanding  of  the  subject,  I have  freely  used 
it,  and  gratefully  acknowledge  my  indebtedness. 

I have  arranged  the  continuous  narrative  after  a 
careful  and  repeated  study  of  the  Four  Gospels. 

May  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  graciously  use 
this  work  in  His  cause,  and  to  His  praise. 

Chicago,  September,  1883.  H.  M.  Payhter. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


PRELIMIHARY  STUDY. 


Why  was  Jesus  hated  so  bitterly,  and  by  whom? 

SeCTIOI!^  I. 

The  story  of  Jesus’  death  has  been  often  told.  It 
cannot  be  told  too  often.  It  is  one  of  surpassing  inter- 
est. It  tells  of  the  voluntary  closing  of  a life  and 
teaching  inexpressibly  precious  to  God,  infinitely  valu- 
able to  man.  Yet  they  aroused  the  deadliest  hate. 
To  us  this  seems  strange.  Why  was  He  pursued  with 
such  a hate?  Why  condemned  to  a death  of  such  pro- 
longed and  exquisite  agony?  Let  us  study  the  causes  of 
this  hate,  and  trace  its  progress  from  its  inception  in 
the  first  year  of  Jesus’  ministry,  down  to  its  result  in 
the  awful  tragedy  which  culminated,  on  man’s  part, 
in  the  cross,  on  J esus’  part,  in  the  atonement  and  res- 
urrection. 

This  hate  had  its  home  in  the  leading  classes.  These 
embodied  the  literature,  law,  culture,  and  were  the  ex- 
ponents of  the  morals  and  religion  of  the  land.  Their 
infiuence  over  the  people  was  unbounded;  and  it 
ultimately  voiced  its  hate  in  the  cry  of  the  mob, 
“Crucify.” 

Even  before  the  opening  of  Jesus’  ministry  there 
was  a ferment  in  the  Sanhedrim,  occasioned  by  the 
questioning  of  the  people  whether  or  no  John  Baptist 


VI 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


was  the  Messiah  (Luke  iii,  John  i).  God  alone  can 
communicate  the  truth  which  man  needs,  and  alone 
give  that  testimony  to  it  which  cannot  be  mistaken. 
His  prophets  were  furnished  with  evidence  of  their  di- 
vine call — which  was  always  given  by  them,  and  by 
the  Prophet  of  all  prophets,  as  He  declared  (John  x, 
37,  38,  &c.,)  and  as  Hicodemus,  the  well-disposed  mem- 
ber of  the  Sanhedrim,  recognized.  This  evidence  every 
J ew  had  a right,  under  the  law,  to  demand  of  a prophet 
on  his  appearance.  How  much  more  had  the  Sanhe- 
drim, in  which,  according  to  the  Mosaic  constitution, 
the  political  and  ecclesiastical  jurisdictions  were  lodged. 
(Deut.  xiii,  1,  sq.;  xviii,  20,  sq. ; Ezek.  xiii,  1,  sq.;) 
They  could  lawfully  demand,  as  subsequently  of  Jesus, 
so  now  of  John,  to  show  his  credentials.  And  in  Jan- 
uary— February,  A.  D.  27,  that  body  sent  a deputa- 
tion of  Priests  and  Levites,  the  two  classes  employed  in 
the  Temple  service — the  Priests  to  make  an  official  ex- 
amination of  his  claims,  the  Levites,  as  Temple-police, 
to  arrest  Him,  if  required.  They  returned  with  the 
report  of  John’s  words:  am  not  the  Messiah.  But 

One  is  here,  whom  you  know  not,  who  is  as  superior  to 
me  as  a master  is  superior  to  a servant.” 

During  the  Passover  of  that  year  (April  11-18),  that 
body,  by  being  brought  into  direct  collision  with  Him, 
learned  more  ot  Him  of  whom  John  spoke.  He,  in  the 
meantime,  had  gathered  a few  disciples,  and  had,  by 
a miracle,  shown  His  Messianic  power  and  glory. 
(John  i,  33-44;  ii,  1-14.)  But  He  had  not  taught,  nor 
made  any  public  manifestation  of  Himself.  An  ancient 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


VII 


prophecy  had  declared  that  the  Messiah  would  inaugu- 
rate His  ministry  in  Jerusalem  by  coming  suddenly  into 
the  Temple  and  purifying  it.  (Mai.  iii,  1.)  The  hour  had 
now  come.  (John  ii,  4.)  The  Paschal  solemnities  had  be- 
gun. The  people  were  in  the  Temple-courts.  Adja- 
cent thereto  was  a vast  open  space,  enclosed  on  its  four 
sides  with  coloiiades,  called  the  court  of  the  Gentiles. 
This  outmost  space,  which  went  around  the  whole  Tem- 
ple, was  laid  with  colored  stones,  and  begirt  with 
beautiful  halls.  On  the  stone  lattice,  which  went  all 
the  way  around  between  it  and  the  Temple,  were  Greek 
and  Latin  inscriptions,  which  forbade  all,  not  Jews,  to 
go  nearer  the  sacred  building,  on  pain  of  death.  (Bell. 
Jud.  vi,  2.  4.)  In  this  court  was  a market,  where  ani- 
mals and  doves  were  sold  for  the  sacrifices,  and  where 
the  foreign  coins  were  exchanged  for  the  half- shekel  re- 
quired for  the  Temple.  (Ex.  xxx,  13.) 

This  profanation  of  the  Temple,  this  disturbance  of 
the  awful  stillness  of  the  place  of  the  quiet  prayer  of 
the  worshippers,  and  of  the  devout  spirit  of  the  multitudes 
watching  the  priestly  service — doubly  wrong,  because 
done  under  the  guise  of  religion — was  a dreadful  shock 
to  Jesus’  conscience  as  a Jew,  and  to  His  heart  as  the 
Son.  There  was  a recognition  in  all  classes  of  the 
Jewish  church  of  the  fact  that  the  reforming  vocation 
stood  higher  than  the  external  right  (Num.  xxvii,  Tal- 
mud) and  that  any  one  acting  as  a prophet,  or  under 
the  divine  impulse,  had  a right  to  interfere  with  ex- 
isting abuses.  Jewish  history  abounds  in  illustrations 
of  its  exercise  (Lange,  m Iogc\  So  acted  Jesus  now. 


Vlll 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


(John  ii,  13-17).  In  His  conscious  dignity  as  Son  of 
Him  to  whom  the  Temple  belonged  in  His  right  as 
prophet,  and  duty  as  the  Messiah — unannounced  as  yet  as 
such — He  entered  into  the  court  to  assert  His  rights, 
and  execute  His  duty — as  declared  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment delineation  of  Him  (Matt,  xxi,  13;  comp.  Is.  Ivi, 
7;  Jer.  vii,  11).  He  made  a whip,  eh  sclioinioon^  oi 
the  rushes,  littered  down  for  the  cattle  to  lie  on.  With 
it  as  an  instrument.  He  drove  out  all  the  beasts.  And  with 
it,  as  a symbol  of  authority  and  judgment.  He  drove  out 
the  traders,  and  brokers  as  well,  then  overthrew  their 
tables,  saying,  ^‘Take  these  things  hence.  Make  not  my 
Father’s  house  a house  of  merchandise.”  Their  acqui- 
escence arose,  partly  from  their  evil  conscience  in  the 
matter,  and,  partly,  from  their  impression  of  His  moral 
majesty  and  power.  For,  as  He  disarmed  the  bands, 
(John  vii,  46;  xviii,  6),  so  He  drove  out  the  unholy 
trafficers  from  the  precincts  of  the  Temple,  by  the 
impression  of  His  personality.  He,  Himself,  was  the 
mighty  miracle. 

This  act,  and  the  words,  ^^My  Father,”  were  an  appeal 
to  the  conscience  of  the  people;  and,  while  a stinging  re- 
buke to  their  wickedness,  were  also  a distinct  challenge 
to  the  theocratic  rulers.  They  were  a public  announce- 
ment of  His  Messiahship — the  import  of  which,  the 
Jews,  with  the  report  of  the  deputation  to  John  before 
their  eyes,  could  not  doubt  nor  misunderstand.?  If 
they  accept  it,  it  will  be  a moral  victory  over  them 
which  will  make  the  theocracy  the  center  of  the  Mes- 
sianic Kingdom.  If  they  reject  it,  they  wnll  reject  and 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ix 


kill  Him,  and  the  theocracy  will  come  to  an  end. 

This  traffic  may  have  been  justified  on  the  plea  of  neces- 
sity. Long  continued  custom  may  have  given  it  recog- 
nition as  lawful.  But  no  trace  of  it  is  in  the  Old  Tes- 
tament. It  was  an  unseemly  mingling  of  sacred  and 
common  transactions,  a transferring  of  the  turmoil  of 
the  market  to  the  Holy  Courts,  a violation  of  the  spirit 
of  the  law,  a degradation  of  the  idea  of  worship,  and  a 
depravation  of  the  conscience  of  the  trafficers,  and  of 
those  who  sold  them  the  privilege.  And  by  the  devout 
worshippers,  who  regarded  only  the  sanctity  of  the 
Temple,  Jesus’  act  must  have  been  heartily  approved. 

But  it  aroused  the  resentment  of  the  High  Priest 
and  his  family,  by  whom  the  traffic  was  sanctioned,  and 
in  whose  gains — so  say  Jewish  authorities — they  shared. 
They  felt  insulted.  They  became  His  permanently  bitter 
enemies.  They  knew  that,  legally,  only  a member  of 
the  Sanhedrim,  or  a prophet,  could  correct  abuses, 
(Grotius),  and  that  Jesus  was  not  the  former,  but  only 
a Galileean  peasant,  having  no  public  authority.  They, 
therefore,  i.  e.,  the  Jews,  daring  not  to  challenge  the 
right  or  propriety  of  the  act,  demanded  a sign — such  as 
great  prophets  gave  in  support  of  great  acts  of  zeal — 
of  His  divine  call. 

Jesus,  in  answer,  gave  an  obscure  allusion  to  His 
own  resurrection — the  great  fact  to  which  He  always 
referred  when  asked  for  a sign  of  His  mission:  ‘‘Des- 
troy this  temple,  and  in  three  days  I will  raise  it  up.” 

Nothing  was  dearer  to  the  Jews  than  the  inviola- 
bility of  the  Temple.  And  the  fact  that  this  saying  was 


X 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


treasured  up,  and  used  as  most  serious,  though  false, 
testimony  against  Him  on  His  trial,  and  was  the  occa- 
sion of  their  bitterest  scorn  when  He  hung  on  the  cross, 
shows  how  deeply  the  word  struck  the  heart  of  the 
hierarchical  party. 

This  incident  introduces  us  to  the  first  party  that 
showed  hostility  to  Jesus.  Etymologically,  the  term 
Ioudaio%  Jews,  describes  the  members  of  the  tribe  ot 
Judah.  But  as  most  of  those  who  returned  from  the 
captivity  belonged  to  this  tribe,  the  word  became  the 
name  of  the  nation,  as  the  theocratic  people.  This  is 
the  meaning  of  the  word  in  the  seventeen  mentions  of 
it  in  the  Synoptists,  and  in  four  places  in  John,  (ii,  13; 
iii,  1;  iv,  22;  xiii,  33).  He,  elsewhere,  uses  it  only  as  a 
designation  of  the  hierarchical  chiefs,  the  Sanhedrim,  as 
the  representatives  of  the  nation,  or  of  the  Sanhedrists, 
their  followers.  It  is  with  him,  the  synonym  of  the 
relentless  hostility  to  Jesus,  of  which  the  Sanhedrim 
was  the  centre  (v,  10;  vii,  1;  viii,  31;  x,  24;  xviii,  12, 
14;  com.  xi,  47-53),  and  which  began,  not  with  the 
people,  nor  the  Pharisees,  but  with  the  spiritual  heads 
of  the  nation.  It  was  aroused  by  His  rebuke  of  their 
connivance  with  wrong,  shown  in  His  first,  and  it  was 
consummated  by  His  second  cleansing  of  the  Temple. 
As  then  judicially,  so  now  morally,  they  rejected  Him 
as  the  Messiali. 

Deep  was  the  impression,  however,  which  His  mira- 
cles (wrought  at  this  time  in  the  city,)  made  upon  the 
public  mind.  Nicodemus,  a member  of  the  Sanhedrim, 
sought  His  acquaintance,  and  recognized  Him  as  a 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XI 


Teacher  come  from  God.  Many  in  the  city  believed 
on,  and  many  disciples  in  the  Judean  province  were 
baptized  by,  Him.  But  the  masses  were  waiting  for 
the  rulers,  and  they  had  not  yet  taken  action.  The  in- 
terruptions, however,  of  His  labors  in  the  country  (John 
iii,  25,)  as  in  the  city,  indicated  quite  clearly  what  that 
action  would  be,  when  His  claims  were  more  pro- 
nounced, and  His  aims  were  better  understood. 

In  the  March  or  April  following,  the  secretly  cher- 
ished, became  outspoken,  hostility.  Jerusalem  was  the 
scene,  the  Jews  the  actors,  the  feast  of  Burim,  or  Pass- 
over,  the  time,  and  the  healing  of  an  impotent  man,  with 
the  command  to  him  to  take  up  his  Kraibaton^  small 
couch,  or  rug,  and  walk,  the  occasion  of  it.  (John  v.) 

Carrying  burdens  on  that  day  was  forbidden  by  the 
law.  (Ex.  xxxi,  13-17;  Heh.  xvii,  21,  22;  Jer.  xvii, 
21,  22.)  But  the  traditions  forbade  the  carrying  of  a 
bed  (Talmud),  and  the  healing  of  the  sick  (Luke  xiii, 
14.)  And  the  Jews,  i.  members  of  the  Sanhedrim, 
said,  therefore,  to  the  man,  “It  is  the  Sabbath  day;  it  is 
not  lawful  for  thee  to  carry  thy  bed.’’ 

The  man’s  answer  was  simple  and  sufficient.  His 
Healer  had  told  him  to  do  it.  The  power  to  heal  in- 
volved the  power  to  suspend  the  Sabbath  law,  which, 
like  the  healing,  was  God’s  work.  And  in  transferring 
the  blame  from  the  man  to  Jesus,  the  Jews  showed 
that  they  recognized  this  fact.  But  indifferent  to  this 
signal  proof  of  His  power,  and  to  His  act  of  mercy  on 
the  body,  and  work  of  grace  in  the  soul,  of  the  sufferer, 
they  were  profoundly  stirred  by  this  daring  contraven- 


Xll 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


tion  of  their  Sabbatical  statutes.  They  saw  that  it  was 
a setting  aside  of  their  whole  system  of  legal  righteous- 
ness. It  demanded  attention.  Jesus  was  a dangerous 
man.  “They  gought  to  persecute,”  i,  e.,  judicially  in- 
jure Him,  break  His  influence,  get  Him  out  of  the  way. 
A council  was  called — for  the  question  whether  such 
things  were  lawful  must  come  before  the  theocratical 
authorities  for  decision.  By  their  order  He  was  ar- 
rested and  brought  before,  not  the  Little  Sanhedrim, 
for  it  had  no  criminal  jurisdiction,  but  the  Great  one. 
He  was  put  upon  trial.  This  fact  is  seen  in  the  use  of 
the  verb,  diohein  (v.  16).  It  has  here  the  double  mean- 
ing of  (a)  persecute,  then,  and  continually,  afterwards ; 
and  (b)  try,  by  a judicial  process,  as  in  Luke  xxi,  12, 
(Greek)  (Lange,  Godet,  Meyer).  The  accusation  was, 
that,  epoiei  (imperfect)  He  “continually  was  doing”  these- 
things;  (see  Mark  i,  21,  23,  30,  for  previous  instances)  an  1 
by  His  principles  and  example,  eluen  (imperfect),  was 
dissolving  the  Sabbath — a strong  word,  indicating  its 
complete  disappearance  (v.  16).  And  the  two  charges, 
(a)  healing,  (b)  commanding  the  man  to  carry  His  bed, 
were  craftily  combined  in  the  single  indictment  of 
Sabbath-breaking. 

Jesus  was  ready  to  join  issue.  This  was  the  first 
time  that  He  had,  in  J erusalem,  broken  with  the  rigid 
Rabbinical  observance  of  the  Sabbath.  Of  this,  as  also 
of  all  traditional  interpretations.  His  action  was  an  em- 
phatic condemnation.  And  His  answer  to  the  indict- 
ment was  both  triumphant  and  sublime.  He  does  not 
here  take  the  ground,  “It  is  lawful  to  do  good  on  that 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Xlll 


day,”  blit  the  loftier  position  of  His  relation  to  the  Lord 
of  the  Sabbath:  ^^My  Father  worketh  until  now,  and  I 
work  also.”  His  absolute  equality  with  the  Father, 
and  their  co-ordinate  working,  give  Him  exaltation 
above  the  Sabbath  law  and  conformity,  hence,  in  His 
working,  with  that  law. 

This  answer  enraged  the  Sanhedrim.  They  could 
not,  for  some  reason,  find  Him  worthy  of  death  under 
this  charge.  They  now  bring  forward  a second  and 
graver  one,  blasphemy,  the  penalty  for  which  was  death 
(Lev.  xxi,  16).  It  was  founded  on  His  words,  Theon 
patera  idion^  ^^God  His  own  Father,”  which  they  rightly 
understood  to  declare  peculiar,  personal  Sonship,  and 
equality  of  dignity  and  nature  with  God;  ison  heauton 
poioon  to  Theo^  “making  Himself  equal  witTi  God.”  To 
them  believing  that  the  Messiah  Himself  would  be  only 
a man,  though  an  extraordinary  one,  this  was  shocking 
blasphemy;  doubly  so,  here,  for  it  made  God  a partici- 
pator in  Jesus’  crime  of  Sabbath-breaking. 

It  is  clear  from  Jesus’  words,  “Ye  sent  unto  John,” 
(v.  33),  that  His  address  (vs.  18-47)  was  spoken  before 
the  Tribunal,  and  in  His  self-vindication  from  this 
charge.  The  point  of  it  is,  dunatai  ho  huios  apK^ 
eauton^  the  Son  is  able  to  do  nothing  from  Himself;” 
(V.  19).  There  is  unity  of  action  founded  on  unity  of 
being — the  perfect  self-communication  of  the  Father  to 
the  Son.  Because  of  relationship  to  the  Father,  and 
from  the  nature  and  necessity  of  the  case,  the  Son  can 
do  nothing  from  Himself,  so  cannot  sin,  L e.,  break  the 
Sabbath  law. 


XIV 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


After  Jesus’  first  reply,  the  Sanhedrim  ^‘sought  the 
more  to  kill  Him.”  The  mallon^  the  more,  of  verse  18, 
shows  that  the  real,  but  concealed,  intention  to  kill,  of 
verse  16,  implied  in  ^^persecute,”  (the  ^^sought  to  kill” 
of  verse  16,  is  an  interpolation),  had  now  passed  into 
the  formal  one  of  declaring  Him  worthy  of  death  for 
blasphemy.  But  it  does  not  seem  to  have  passed  into  a 
judicial  decision.  The  hour  for  that  had  not  yet  come. 
And  His  second  vindication  compelled  them  to  let  Him 
go — not  because  their  Judgment  was  convinced,  or  their 
hostility  was  abated,  for  the  whole  scene  had  rapidly  de- 
veloped their  unbelief,  rejection  and  hostility,  but — ^be- 
cause, for  some  reason,  they  could  not  hold  Him.  They 
decided — so  we  infer  from  the  increasing  hostility  that 
His  subsequent  acts  of  healing  on  the  Sabbath  aroused 
—that  such  acts,  as  He  did,  were  unlawful.  And  they 
let  Him  know  that  if  He  was  again  found  in  Judea, 
they  would  re-arrest  Him,  and  put  Him  to  death.  (John 
vii,  1,  26-32.) 

Because  of  these  acts,  the  priests  lost  their  opportu- 
nity of  being  used  in  His  service.  Their  priesthood 
was  set  aside.  And  they,  and  the  people  in  their  cor- 
porate capacity  as  in  covenant  with  God,  must  suffer  loss. 
For  these  acts  showed  that  nothing  He  could  do,  or  say, 
would  ever  convince  the  rulers  of  His  divine  character 
and  mission,  or  change  their  relentless  hate.  By  their  de- 
cision He  was  excluded  from  Judea.  Henceforth  the 
Holy  City  could  be  no  safe  abode  for  Him.  Hence- 
forth, did  He  go  up  to  the  feasts,  it  must  be  with  His 
life  in  His  hands.  He  saw  what  the  end  would  be. 


raE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XV 


The  seat  of  the  theocracy  was  to  he  the  center  of  resist- 
ance. This  would  go  on  increasing  in  power  while  He 
lived.  Under  the  withering  influence  of  this  decision,  the 
outward  admiration,  or  passive  indifference  of  its  popu- 
lation— completely  under  the  council  of  the  priests — 
would  rapidly  pass  into  doubt,  disbelief,  readiness  to  sup- 
port the  rulers  in  any  act  of  violence.  The  struggle 
between  Him  and  them  must,  from  its  very  nature,  be 
a deadly  one.  He  had  precipitated  it.  It  would  not 
stop  until  it  ended  in  His  death  in  Jerusalem.  (Luke 
xiii,  33,  sq.)  Every  time  He  was  in  the  city.  He,  when 
face  to  face  with  ^^the  Jews,’’  manifested  His  glory  most 
brilliantly.  This  both  incensed  and  hardened  them 
more  and  more.  They  obliged  Him  to  keep  up  an  in- 
cessant conflict.  (And  to  this  are  we  indebted  for 
those  lengthy  and  precious  discourses  in  John  v-xi.) 
Henceforth  they  sent  their  emissaries,  who  so  constant- 
ly watched  His  steps,  disturbed  Him  in  Galilee, 
and  seized  every  occasion  to  destroy  His  reputa- 
tion and  His  work.  (Matt,  xvi,  12;  Mark  iii,  22,  vii, 
1;  Luke  v,  17,  vi,  1 3.) 

Immediately  upon  His  return  to  Galilee,  April,  A.  D. 
28,  Jesus  went  into  the  synagogue  at  Nazareth,  and 
addressed  the  people.  His  human  parentage,  child- 
hood, occupation,  and  lack  of  the  education  obtained  in 
the  Kabbinical  schools,  were  familiar  facts.  There  may 
have  been  a secret  dislike  of  Him,  because,  though 
among,  He  was  not  of,  them.  His  words  now  excite. 
His  prophetic  claims  enrage,  them.  They  assailed  Him, 
and  would  have  killed  Him,  had  He  not  escaped.  (Lk.iv.) 


XVI 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


This  attack  proved  but  the  ebullition  of  fierce  and 
cruel  men;  and  was  not  repeated.  Not  so,  however, 
was  the  cool  antagonism  of  the  Pharisees.  Those  in 
Jerusalem  had  already  manifested  their  feelings.  Je- 
sus’ public  appearance  in  the  city.  His  cleansing  of  the 
Temj)le,  His  miracles,  and  His  growing  popularity, 
seen  in  the  great  numbers  that  came  to  Him  for  bap- 
tism, increased  their  uneasiness  and  envy.  They  began 
to  take  serious  account  of  this  One,  who  might  be  more 
independent  and  formidable  than  John.  (John  iv,  1-3.) 
And  at  once  they  would  have  acted,  had  not  He,  to 
quiet  the  agitation,  left  Judea,  and  returned  to  Galilee. 

This  was  in  December,  A.  D.  27.  In  the  following 
summer  they,  the  Pharisees,  came  prominently  forward 
as  active  foes.  Nor  did  their  agitation  cease  until  it 
reached  that  point  where  His  death  was  inevitable. 

They  were  the  second  great  party  opposed  to  Jesus. 
They,  and  the  Sadducees,  were  not  a sect,  in  the  proper 
sense  of  that  term,  but  one  of  the  parties,  rather,  into 
which  the  nation  was  divided.  (Gratz.  Gest,  der  JudeUy 
iii,  81).  The  name — the  Greek  form  of  the  Hebrew 
perucheirby  the  Separated — originated  in  the  era  of  the 
captivity.  It  was  the  title  given,  or  assumed,  of  those 
who  opposed  those  who  favored  the  mingling  of  the  Jews 
with  foreigners.  (Smith’s  Bib.  Die.  Art.  Phar.^  These 
would  denationalize  and  paganize  the  nation.  Those 
would  keep  it  pure.  To  them  conscious  of  its  high  desti- 
ny, this  mingling,  and  subjection  to  a foreign  yoke,  were 
alike  odious.  The  yoke  they  could  not  prevent.  They  had 
to  bear  it,  with  but  brief  intervals,  down  to  the  time  of 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XVI 1 


Christ,  and  were  yet  bearing  it  when  He  lived.  But 
they  ^ would  not  be  slaves  to  their  conquerors.  They 
would  not  debase  their  blood  by  intermarriage.  They 
would  keep  patriotism  an  ever-living  flame.  All  this 
could  be  done  only  by  keeping  the  theocracy  flourish- 
ing. And  it  could  flourish  only  by  a rigid  keeping  of 
the  law,  and  of  all  the  traditions. 

These  were  living  ideas.  Around  these  a strong 
party,  called  Pharisees,  was  speedily  gathered.  Their 
influence  rapidly  spread.  They  became,  and  continued, 
the  leaders  (Matt,  xxiii,  2),  to  whom  the  people  looked 
as  guides  and  examples.  Through  their  influence  came, 
out  of  the  two  facts  above  mentioned,  that  political  and 
religious  situation  which  was  throughout  the  land  when 
Jesus  appeared.  From  that  intimate  association  of 
those  ideas,  piety  had  gradually  become  confounded 
with  patriotism.  Then  it  lost  its  place  as  an  end,  most 
excellent  in  itself,  and  was  regarded  only  as  the  means 
of  keeping  patriotism  alive.  Thus  it  lost  its  hold  on 
the  heart.  And  in  its  place  there  grew  up,  under 
Pharasaic  teaching,  that  brood  of  vices  which  called 
forth  Jesus’  most  emphatic  condemnation. 

This  condition  of  things  was  stereotyped  by  that 
magnificent  outbreak  of  patriotism  under  the  Macca- 
bees, which,  while  it  made  the  people  a nation  of  patri- 
ots, so  hardened  their  character  that  they  might  be 
crushed,  but  could  not  be  changed.  This  outbreak  also,un- 
der  Pharasaic  teaching,  changed  entirely  the  people’s  idea 
of  the  Messiah.  He,  unlike  the  One  whom  the  prophets 
had  foretold,  was  to  be  an  earthly  King  full  of  grandeur. 


XVlll 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


and  a warrior  sweeping  all  foreign  rule  from  tlie  land. 
He  was  to  conquer  universal  peace  by  the  sword,  make 
men  happy  through  his  legislation,  and  give  the 
chosen  people  wealth  beyond  computation.  (Presse- 
nse’sZ^y^  of  Jesus ^ *^4:.)  This  idea,  the  burden  of 

the  Hebrew  Sibylline  leaves,  was  perpetuated  and  in- 
tensified in  the  national  mind  by  being  linked  to  the 
fanatic  patriotism  which  the  book  of  Judith  kept  alive. 
Patriotism  was  the  animating  principle  of  the  later 
Pharisees,  and  must  be  that  of  their  Messiah.  The 
triumph  of  monotheism  being,  as  they  regarded  it,  the 
triumph  of  their  ideal,  they  held  it  fast  as  the  means  to 
this  end.  To  it,  as  personified  in  Jesus,  they  could 
not,  however,  but  be  bitterly  opposed. 

The  first  Pharisees  were  men  of  great  purity  of  char- 
acter, of  noble  mind,  and  of  exalted  worth.  They  ear- 
nestly opposed  everything  inconsistent  with  the  ritual 
and  with  the  written  law.  Their  nobility  of  character,  pas- 
sionate patriotism,  and  strict  adherence  to  the  Mosaic 
institutions,  gave  them  a deservedly  supreme  infiuence. 
This  infiuence  the  party  possessed  in  the  days  of  Jesus. 
It  had  so  powerful  a hold  on  the  minds  of  the  people,  and 
had  so  worked  on  the  national  pride,  tliat  it  practically,  as 
a sort  of  a religious  aristocracy,  dominated  over  all 
classes.  Even  the  hierarchy,  through  Sadducean, 
yielded  to  its  tyranny.  Eulers  resisting  its  dictation 
were  discredited.  Those  of  them  who  believed  on  Je- 
sus, dared  not  confess  Him,  for  fear  of  its  wrath.  The 
people  less  strong  could  not  stand  up  against  this  force. 
The  well-meaning  ones  of  John  ix,  who  desired  to  own 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XIX 


JesHS,  but  for  the  sake  of  personal  safety,  bring  the 
matter  immediately  to  the  spiritual  chiefs — as  did  the 
man  of  John  v- — are  but  samples  of  the  power  of  this 
odious  influence.  And  the  only  One  who  stood  up 
against  it  found  the  reward  of  His  courage  and  faithful- 
ness in  the  cry:  ^^Crucify  Him!  Crucify  Him!” 

This  galling  tyranny  resulted  from  the  ascendency 
which  the  party  had  obtained  through  that  which  was 
then,  and  had  been  for  centuries,  its  chief  distinction, 
viz:  regard  for  the  oral  law — a series  of  unwritten  in- 
terpretations, handed  down  from  Moses,  it  was  said, 
and  which  was  needed  to  complete,  explain  and  enforce 
the  written  law.  This  system,  when  not  puerile,  was 
vicious.  It  led  its  adherents  into  the  discussion,  not  of 
laws  of  vital  importance  to  man,  but  of  scholastic 
and  trivial  questions.  (Mishna,  ITebamoth^  1-4.  DavTcei^ 
Ham-Mishna,  pg.  56.)  It  nourished,  not  intrinsic 
excellence,  but  self-complacency  and  spiritual  pride. 
It  made  its  devotees  the  most  intense  formalists  that 
the  world  has  ever  known.  In  embracing  every  detail 
of  religious  and  daily  life,  it  treated  men  as  children,  and 
laid  on  them  ^^burdens  too  heavy” — so  Jesus  said — “to  be 
borne.” 

The  result  was  disastrous  to  sound  piety  and  elevated 
morality.  Formal  devotion  took  the  place  of  the 
former,  heartless  observance  of  petty,  rigid  rules,  and  a 
great  show  of  attitudes  and  of  clothes,  the  place  of  the 
latter.  Everything  was  sacriflced  to  the  letter,  and  to 
the  external.  Worldly  ends  and  success  were  sought 
through  religious  means.  Dissimulation  and  lust  were 


XX 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


allowed  in  their  own  members,  so  that  they  were  done 
in  secret,  and  God  was  not  publicly  dishonored.  (Jahr 
hundert  des  Heils^  ii,  166-170.)  Except  its  genuine 
patriotism,  the  whole  thing  was  hollow.  Its  adherents 
were  penetrated  by  their  beliefs,  devoted  to  the  theoc- 
racy, and,  in  their  own  way,  very  devout.  But  the 
Pharisee’s  prayer  showed  their  pretense.  Thoroughly 
conscious  of  their  own  worth,  they  needed  to  ask  noth- 
ing from  God.  Thanking  Him  that  they  had  abund- 
ance of  wealth,  and  perfection  of  character,  they  looked 
with  disdain  on  others.  But,  with  some  noble  excep- 
tions, they  were  hypocrites,  i.  mask- wearers,  outside 

religious,  within  full  of  all  uncleanness. 

They  and  Jesus  held  some  beliefs  in  common.  But 
this  fact  could  not  blind  Him  to  their  unrealities.  To 
Him,  the  word  of  God  alone  was  authoritative.  They 
made  it  void  by  their  traditions,  which  either  strangled 
its  freedom,  or  directly  opposed  its  teachings.  He 
called  for  right  actions  from  right  motives,  and  for 
purity  of  soul.  They  cherished  outward  purity,  and 
boasted  of  a righteousness  which  was  merely  a bald  and 
mechanical  egotism.  Between  His  teaching,  exposi- 
tions of  the  law  and  prophets,  and  His  and  their  life, 
there  could  be  neither  accord  nor  sympathy.  As  to  be- 
liefs and  conduct,  the  nature  and  essence  of  religion, 
the  law,  the  rule  of  life,  the  relation  of  God  to  man,  and 
of  man  to  God,  and  the  authority  of  tradition,  the  antag- 
onism was  radical,  sharp,  direct  and  unyielding.  He 
exposed  their  true  character.  They  looked  on  Him 
with  mingled  amazement,  horror  and  hate.  They  never 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xxi 


felt  that  they  were  wrong  and  He  was  right.  Hence 
they  rejected  Him,  and  His  words.  They  saw  that  His 
success  was  the  downfall  of  traditionalism.  And  re- 
garding it  as  the  life  of  J udaisin,  they  felt  that  it  was 
better  that  He,  rather  than  it,  should  die.  And  our  in- 
vestigation, as  it  proceeds,  will  show  how  the  antagon- 
ism of  thought  passed  with  them  into  the  antagonism  of 
act.  The  conflict  at  Jerusalem  had  aroused  them  to 
action.  They,  and  the  doctors  of  the  law,  were  present 
at  Capernaum,  in  large  numbers.  (Matt,  ix,  2-8 ; Mark 
ii,  2-12;  Luke  v,  17-26.)  They  had  come  together  out 
of  every  town  of  Galilee  and  Judea,  to  meet  those  from 
Jerusalem.  They  were  aware  of  Jesus’  growing  influ- 
ence and  reputation,  that  His  fame  was  spread  abroad 
everywhere,  and  that  He  was  the  object  of  intense  in- 
terest, and  of  great  curiosity.  They  came  to  judge  Him 
and  His  mission  by  personal  observation.  They  saw  a 
paralytic  set  down  before  Him.  They  heard  Him 
say,  ‘‘Take  courage,  my  son,  (Matt.  Greek)  thy  sins  are 
forgiven  thee.”  (Luke.)  The  form  of  Jesus’  expression 
intimates  that  it  was  a challenge  to  the  Pharisees  and 
scribes.  They  instantly  accepted  it.  It  was  a welcome 
word  to  their  heresy-hunting  souls.  They  “reasoned  in 
their  hearts,”  they  “murmured  with  their  tongues,”  “This 
man  blasphemeth:  for  who,  save  God,  can  forgive  sins?” 
Jesus  heard  their  words  and  understood  their  mur- 
murings.  Jesus  had  the  power  to,  and,  with  equal  ease, 
could,  pardon  or  heal.  But  it  is  very  much  easier  to 
confound  the  person  who  claims  the  power  to  heal — un- 
less he  actually  does  it — than  the  one  who  claims  the 


XXll 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


power  to  forgive  sins.  He,  therefore,  to  convince  the 
people  that  He  possessed  the  power  to  forgive  sins,  gave 
an  imposing  physical  demonstration  of  the  moral  fact. 
He  showed,  by  and  through  the  cure  of  the  body,  that 
He  both  had  the  power  to,  and  actually  did,  forgive  the 
sins,  of  the  paralytic. 

The  Pharisees  were  silenced.  They  could  do  nothing. 
But  they  were  the  more  irritated,  and  watched  Him 
more  closely.  His  imputed  blasphemy  did  not  touch 
their  personal  feelings,  prejudices,  or  cherished  convic- 
tions. These,  however,  were,  a few  days  later,  shocked 
by  His  utter  disregard  of  their  traditionalism  as  to  the 
Sabbath.  (Matt,  xii,  1-8;  Mark  ii,  21-28;  Luke  vi,  1-6.) 
They  saw  Him  start  from  Capernaum  on  a Sabbath  day. 
They  watched  to  see  whether  His  walk  would  be  longer 
than  the  law  allowed.  They  saw  His  hungry  disciples 
plucking,  and  rubbing  in  their  hands,  some  grain.  This 
was  contrary  to  their  canons.  (Lightfoot,  Meyer,  on 
Matt,  xii,  2,  sq.)  They  found  fault  with  Him  for  al- 
lowing it.  His  unanswerable  justification  of  their  con- 
duct and  His  two  declarations ; (a)  that  the  Sabbath  was 
j^..  made  for  man,  and  not  man  for  the  Sabbath;  and,  (b) 
that  the  Son  of  Man  is  Lord  also  of  the  Sabbath;  exci- 
ted their  intense  hostility,  as  His  healing  of  the  im- 
potent man,  and  His  cleansing  of  the  Temple,  had 
aroused  the  wrath  of  the  hierarchy.  When,  therefore, 
on  the  following  Sabbath,  He  entered  into  the  Syna- 
gogue, they  watched  Him  with  malicious  gaze,  to  see  if 
He  would  heal  any  one.  ‘‘^Is  it,”  said  He,  ^dawful  to  do 
good,  and  to  save  life,  on  the  Sabbath?  You  will  take  a 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXlll 


sheep  out  of  a pit  on  that  day.  How  much  better  is  a 
man  than  a sheep.  It  is,  therefore,  lawful  to  do  good  on 
that  day.”  And  He,  to  vindicate  this  principle  for  ail 
time,  healed  a man  before  them  on  that  day.  (Matt, 
xii,  9-12;  Mark  iii,  1-7;  Luke  vi,  6-12.) 

They  were  again  silenced,  but  filled  with  rage.  They 
now  had  ground  for  an  accusation.  A council  of  their 
own  members  was  held.  As  before  in  J udea,  A.  D.  27, 
by  the  Jews,  so  now  in  Galilee,  A.  D,  28,  His  death  was 
determined  upon.  And  they  at  once  took  council  with 
the  Herodians,  of  Capernaum,  how  to  accomplish  it. 

These  were  a political  party  which  originated  under 
Herod  the  Great,  whom  many  of  them  regarded  as  the 
Messiah,  and  whose  half-heathen  dynasty  they  sustained. 
(Lightfoot.)  They  hated  the  Roman  dominion  over 
Judea.  Yet  because  they  desired  Herod’s  family  to 
possess  kingly  power,  they^  held  that  Rome’s  rule  was 
lawful  and  just,  and  that  the  Herodian  family’s  rule  under 
it  was  a pledge  of  the  national  existence.  Their  hope  was, 
that  should  Judea  become  free,  Herod’s  house  could 
then,  above  all  other  claimants,  sit  on  the  throne.  They 
cared  little  for  either  religion,  or  morality,  or  for  the  law. 
They  accepted  the  compromise  between  the  ancient  faith 
and  heathen  civilization  which  that  family  sought  to  reaU 
ize  as  the  highest  consummation  of  Jewish  hopes.  They 
strongly  disliked  the  rigid  observance  of  the  Mosaic 
ritual  and  ethics.  Hence  they  welcomed  that  family’s 
libertinism,  and  aided  its  efforts  to  heathenize  the  land. 
Thus  they,  by  foreign  corruptions,  as  the  Pharisees  by 
native  traditions,  helped  on  the  work  of  undermining 


XXIV 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


the  national  faith,  and  destroying  the  national  power. 

We  are  not  informed  what  was  their  motive  for  joining 
in  this  conspiracy.  With  them  Jesus  had  nothing  in 
common,  as  is  clear  from  His  solemn  warning  against 
their  Sadducean -leaven  given  at  a later  day.  (Matt,  xvi, 
6,  with  Mark  xiii,  15.)  They  cared  nothing  for  His 
supposed  disregard  of  the  Sabbath,  but  were  jealous, 
of  Him,  perhaps,  as  said  to  be  a claimant  for  David’s 
throne.  Or,  the  secret  of  their  action  was,  perhaps, 
that  against  their  lives  and  teaching.  His  own  were  a 
continuous  and  solemn  rebuke. 

The  conspiracy  failed,  because  Jesus,  as  soon  as  He 
knew  of  it,  withdrew  from  that  place.  But  it  was  not 
abandoned,  rather  it  was  made  stronger.  The  impres- 
sion which  the  raising  of  the  widow’s  son  made  upon 
the  people  was  widespread  and  profound.  It  must  be 
counteracted,  and  could  be,^  c>nly,  by  the  organization 
into  one  compact  body,  of  all  the  opposition  in  Galilee. 
This  was  the  object,  so  it  seems,  that  brought  down,  in 
the  autumn  of  that  year,  a deputation  of  scribes  from 
Jerusalem.  (Matt,  xii,  22-37;  Mark  iii,  19-30.)  The 
Chief  Priests  were  Sadducees.  But  the  scribes,  while 
writers  and  teachers  by  profession,  were  Pharisees  in 
sentiment  and  party  connection.  (Com.  Matt,  xii,  24, 
with  Mark  iii,  12.  See  Alexander  in  loco,)  And  these 
two  were  constantly  joined  together  in  hostility  to 
Jesus.  (Matt,  v,  20;  xii,  8;  xv,  1;  xxiii,  2-29;  Mark 
ii,  16;  vii,  5;  Luke  vi,  7;  John  vii,  3,  &c.)  They  now 
united  with  the  Pharisees,  resident  in  Capernaum,  in 
watching  Him.  In  their  presence  He  cast  a demon 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXV 


ont  of  one  blind  and  dumb,  and  immediately  the  man 
spoke  and  saw.  At  once  the  astonished  people  ask, 
‘^Is  not  this  David’s  Son?”'  This  Messianic  title  given 
Him — now  for  the  first  time — instantly  aroused  the 
malignant  feelings  of  the  scribes.  They  could  not 
deny  the  miracle,  but  they  imputed  it  to  Satanic  agency: 
“He  casts  out  demons  by  Beelzebub.”  And,  subse- 
quently, when  the  blind  men  addressed  Him  by  the 
same  title,  and  were  healed,  the  Pharisees  repeat  the 
calumny  (Matt,  ix,  27,  34).  As  this  virtually  included 
all  that  He  said  and  did,  it  was  a sweeping  charge  that  the 
Spirit  of  God,  who  rested  on  Him,  was  the  spirit  of 
Beelzebub.  And  this  explains  the  severity  of  Jesus’  un- 
answerable reply.  (Matt,  xii,  26-37;  Mark  iii,  23-30; 
Luke  xi,  17-23.) 

Thus,  to  the  opprobrious  charges,  “He  has  broken  the 
Sabbath,”  “He  has  blasphemed,”  they  now  add  this,  the 
third,  “He  is  in  league  with  evil  spirits.”  To  this,  a few 
days  later,  they  added  a fourth.  Jesus’  call  of  Levi,  the 
publican,  to  the  most  intimate  relations  with  Himself, 
was  a great  mortification  to  their  personal  and  party 
pride;  and,  because  of  the  odiousness  of  the  publicans, 
a grievous  offense  to  the  public  weal.  They  were  a 
proof  and  badge  of  hated  Gentile  domination,  and  of 
consequent  national  degradation.  They  were,  as  the 
agents  of  oppression  and  robbery,  outcasts,  hated  and 
despised.  To  call  one  of  them  to  be  a disciple,  and  then 
an  apostle,  was  to  say  that  publicans  could  receive  the 
truth,  and  were  as  good  as  Pharisees. 

While  this  sore  was  yet  rankling  in  their  breasts. 


XXVI 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


they  learned  that  Jesus  had  actually  accepted  an  invi- 
tation to  dine  at  Levi’s  house.  (Matt,  ix,  10-17 ; Mark 
ii,  15-22;  Luke  v,  29-39.)  It  was  a great  feast,  given 
to  honor  Jesus,  and  also  to  give  Him  an  opportunity  to 
meet  Levi’s  own  class,  publicans,  in  social  intercourse. 
A great  company  of  them  was  present.  Jesus’  presence 
showed  a high  regard  for  them.  And  it  was  also  an 
open  rebuke  of  the  Pharisees’  exclusiveness.  They  were 
present.  They  saw  Him  eat  with  publicans  and  sin- 
ners (Mark  x,  16).  This  was  an  outrage  against  which 
they  remonstrated  angrily  with  His  disciples — as  they 
did  afterwards  when  He  went  into  Zaccheus’  house, 
Luke  xix — ^^Why  eats  and  drinks,  your  Master,  with 
men  of  evil  lives,  who  regard  not  * the  traditions,  and 
who  are  servants  of  Kome?”  And  this  anger  was  in- 
creased by  Jesus’  answer  to  them:  ^^God  will  have 
mercy,  and  not  sacrifice;”  ^^the  whole  need  not  a physi- 
cian, but  the  sick;”  ‘^Icame,  not  to  quarrel  with  rulers, 
but  to  save;”  ‘^not  to  call  the  righteous,  but  sinners,  to 
repentance.” 

They  dared  not  stop  Him  in  His  work.  His  reputa- 
tion and  influence  with  the  people  was  now — Apr.-Oct. 
A.  D.  29 — very  great.  It  seemed  as  if  success  would 
crown  His  labors.  But  appearances  could  not  deceive 
His  clear-seeing  eye.  He  saw  that  the  hostility  was 
unyielding;  that  His  popularity  rested  on  no  solid  basis; 
that  the  more  clearly  and  fully  He  made  known  His  Mes- 
sianic character,  the  more  would  people  fall  away,  and  be 
ready — though  now  they  would  make  Him  King  (John 
vi) — to  join  in  the  cry,  ^^Crucify;”  that  the  nation 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXVll 


wonld  not  receive  Him;  and  that  He  must  suffer  many 
things,  and  he  set  at  naught.  All  this,  He  said,  for  the 
sake  of  the  faithful  few,  to  whose  instruction  He  now 
largely  devoted  Himself.  He  kept  Himself  secluded. 

He  would  not  array  the  rulers  and  chief  men  against 
Himself,  needlessly.  Yet  their  rage  grew  fiercer  with 
every  opportunity  it  had  to  express  itself. 

Those  of  the  scribes  who  had  previously  visited  Ca- 
pernaum, had  returned  with  bitter  feelings,  aroused  by 
their  discomfiture.  Meantime,  reports  had  been  brought 

to  the  city  of  the  stupendous  miracle  of  the  feeding  of  i 

the  five  thousand,  and  of  the  desire  of  the  excited 
people  to  make  Jesus  King.  His  enemies  were  greatly 
%larmed  and  agitated.  The  impression  on  the  public 
mind  must  be  effaced.  Jesus’  growing  popularity  must 
be  checked.  A deputation  of  the  scribes  and  Phari- 
sees, as  representatives  of  the  whole  body  of  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees  of  the  city,  was — summer  of  A.  D.  29 — 
sent  down  from  the  Synagogue  in  Jerusalem  to  Caper- 
naum. This  was  the  first  time  the  Pharisees  in  the 
city  are  found  united  with  those  in  Galilee  against  Him. 

To  their  wakeful  eye  and  ear,  however,  nothing  comes, . 
save  the  puerile  fact  that  His  disciples  eat  with  un- 
washen  hands.  This,  because  a transgression  against 
the  traditions  of  the  elders,  was  an  offense  to  the  Phari- 
sees rather  than  to  the  scribes,  who,  Jesus  saw,  from 
this  incident,  would  continue  His  enemies.  In  His  re- 
ply, so  full  of  severity,  and  which  offended  them  the 
more.  He  openly  charged  them  with  being  hypocrites, 
and  with  setting  aside,  by  their  traditions,  the  com- 


xxvn  1 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


mandments  of  God.  (Matt,  xvi,  20;  Mark  iii,  1-23.) 

In  these  two  incidents  the  scribes  are  seen  for  the  first 
time  as  a party,  the  third,  hostile  to  Jesns.  Henceforth 
their  activity  in  bringing  about  the  death  of  J esns,  was 
very  great  and  infiuential.  They  were  called  gramma- 
teis^  writers,  and  sopJierim^  wise  men.  They  had  been 
a distinct  class  in  the  nation  from  an  early  day.  Their 
position  and  importance,  after  the  captivity,  were 
higher  than  those  of  the  High  Priest.  (Ez.  v,  12.)  And 
after  the  time  of  Malachi  they  became  a yet  more  im- 
portant element  in  society.  With  him  the  Spirit’s  \ 
' vivifying,  purifying  gales  ceased  to  blow  over  the  peo- 
ple. As  a consequence,  the  religious  life  became  stag-y 
nant,  and  the  ritualistic  element  petrified.  The  reign< 
■^of  the  letter  began.  Tradition  followed  with  its  with- 1 
ering  influence.  Judaism  became  a dead  organizations 
-Then  the  scribes  became  a powerful  corporation.  The 
people  regarded  them  as  having  taken  the  place  of  the 
prophets,  and  their  influence  was  unbounded.  The 
praises  bestowed  upon  them  by  Sirach  (xxxix,  1-1 9)^ 
about  200  B.  0.,  is  such  as  no  mortal  deserves.  The 
Targums  apply  to  them  the  Messianic  promises.  The 
‘‘Book  of  Principles”  avers  that  the  crown  they  wear  is 
higher  than  that  worn  by  High  Priest  or  King,  that 
heaven  is  only  a school  of  Babbis,  and  that  honoring  a 
Rabbi  is  honoring  God.  (Pirke,  Aboth,  pg.  581,  683.) 

This  praise  wh’ch  the  scribes,  as  a class,  continued  to 
claim,  was  originally  bestowed  upon  “the  Great  Sanhe- 
drim,” as  the  immediate  successors  of  Ezra  were  called. 
These  were  men  venerated,  because  zealous  for  every- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xxix 


thing  that  concerned  the  law,  and  whose  one  aim  was  to 
promote  reverence  for  it,  and  to  make  it  the  ground- 
work and  life  blood  of  the  nation’s  life.  They  wrote  it 
out,  and  classified  its  precepts.  They  were  both  the 
custodians  and  expounders  of  the  sacred  writings. 
(Schubert.)  And  that  they  might  make  them,  by  liv- 
ing obedience,  a living  reality  to  society  and  state,  they 
kept  them  continually  before  the  people.  They,  more 
than  any  other  class,  represented  the  people’s  relig-  , 
ious  life.  They  drew  to  themselves  nearly  all  the  en- 
ergy of  thought  of  Judaism,  and  gave  it  that  form 
which  it  had  when  J esus  appeared.  (Pressense’s  Life 
of  Jesus  Christ.) 

From  about  B.  0.  300,  however,  that  force  was,  un- 
happily, in  the  wrong  direction.  Then  the  scribes  be- 
gan to  give  decisions  on  the  law,  and  also  new  precepts. 
These  latter,  called  “The  Words  of  the  Scribes,”  formed 
a new  system  of  casuistry.  And  though  this  com- 
pletely inverted  the  right  relation  of  the  moral  and 
ceremonial  laws,  yet  it,  through  the  infiuence  of  the 
scribes,  was  considered  worthy  of  greater  authority  and 
honor  than  the  law  itself.  Hence,  an  offense  against  it 
was  graver,  and  more  severely  to  be  punished  than  an 
offense  against  the  law. 

Some  scribes  were  transcribers  merely;  others,  readers 
and  interpreters  of  the  law;  and  others,  lawyers  in  the 
lower  courts.  The  more  distinguished  filled  three  high 
offices:  (a)  they  expounded  in  the  synagogues;  (b)  they 
sat  in  the  Sanhedrim ; to  which,  as  a class,  they  had  a 
right  (though  all  of  them  were  not  members,  Winer) 


XXX 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


and  of  which  they  formed  a constituent  part;  (c)  and 
they  taught  in  the  schools  and  universities,  of  which 
there  were  84.  (Lightfoot’s  Works,  ix,  306.)  Those  of 
them  competent  and  authorized  to  teach  the  Gemara, 
were  called  nomodidasTceloi^  doctors  of  the  law.  (Luke 
V,  17.)  Their  text  hooks  were  the  Targums  and  Talmuds* 
Out  of  them  they  taught  the  law,  and  their  own  ethi. 
cal  system;  and  portrayed  their  promised  Messiah.  Not 
a Sufferer  was  He  to  be:  that  idea  had  no  place  in 

their  system,  and  was  abhorrent  to  all  their  thoughts: 
but  a mighty  King  descended  from  David  and  born  in 
Bethlehem,  who  would  re-conqner  Palestine,  and  restore 
the  kingdom  to  Israel.  (Gfroerer,  ii,  216,  246.) 

Their  learning,  labors  and  high  social  position  gave 
them  a moral  authority,  and  a political  influence,  greater 
than  that  of  any  other  class.  To  them  Herod  referred 
the  question  where  Christ  should  be  born.  Once,  when 
the  people  were  about  to  proclaim  Jesus  as  the  Messi- 
ah, their  influence  checked  the  movement.  And  they 
must  bear  a large  share  of  the  guilt  of  His  death. 

No  wonder  they  were  insufferably  self-conceited  and 
vain.  In  the  graphic  delineation  of  them  in  the  gos- 
pels, we  see  their  strut  and  airs.  In  public  life  they 
went  about  in  long  robes,  with  broad,  blue  fringe,  sought, 
and  received,  the  title  of  Rabbi,  the  reverential  kiss  of 
scholars,  the  salutation  of  the  crowd  in  the  market- 
place, and  the  chief  seats  in  the  synagogues.  (Matt, 
xxiii.)  In  social  life,  the  seat  of  honor  at  feasts  must 
be  theirs.  By  pretense  of  great  piety,  and  show  of 
long  prayers,  they  acquired  an  influence  over  wealthy 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXXI 


widows.  Then,  under  pretense  of  advancing  their  in- 
terests, they,  who  boasted  that  they  loved  the  law  and 
truth  of  God  too  well  to  teach  for  pay  (Schurer,  Neutest 
Zertgest^  pg.  443),  devoured  their  wealth.  (Matt,  xxiii.) 
To  their  instruction  from  Moses, Jesus  commanded  obedi- 
dience.  (Matt,  xxii,  2.)  To  their  own  dicta  His 
teaching  was,  in  its  deepest  principles,  strongly  opposed. 
And  the  chief  features  of  their  portrait,  as  drawn  by 
Him,  pride,  hypocrisy  and  coveteousness.  He  exposed 
in  all  their  hideousness. 

They  were  divided  into  two  chief  schools,  that  of 
Beth  Hillel,  arid  that  of  Beth  Shammai.  Hillel  lived 
to  be  120  years  old,  and  may  have  been  one  of  the 
doctors  {i.  ^.,  expounders  of  the  Gemara,  and  actual 
members  of  the  Sanhedrim),  before  whom  Jesus  was 
talking  when  12  years  old.  He,  and  Gamaliel,  His 
grandson,  were,  successively,  the  head  of  this  school 
during  Jesus’  whole  ministry.  There  were  members  of 
this  school  who  were  placed  by  the  side  of  prophets,  and 
who  were  among  the  instruments  by  which  the  wisdom 
of  God  was  teaching  men.  The  Hillels  were  men  of 
patience,  peace  and  humanity.  They  were  advocates  of 
toleration.  They  were  interested,  not  in  political  af- 
fairs, but  in  the  study  of  the  law,  deeds  of  kindness, 
and  the  mission  of  Israel.  To  this  school  those  scribes 
belonged— so  it  seems — ^who  were  favorably  disposed 
towards  Jesus,  respected  Him  as  a Teacher,  were  not 
far  from  the  Kingdom  of  God,  and  though  too  timid  to 
take  a stand  against  the  firm  and  determined  spirit  of  Sad- 
ducean  priests  and  scribes  of  the  school  of  Shammai,  yet 


xxxii 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


they  took  no  part  in  His  trial  and  death.  (Matt,  xxii, 
34;  Mark  x,  17;  xii,  34;  John  iii,  1;  vii,  51;  xii,  42. 

The  Shammai  men,  seemingly  strict,  were  secnlar, 
rich,  luxuriant,  self-indulgent,  and  tainted  with  deep 
and  incurable,  though  unconscious,  hypocrisy.  They 
were  a political  party,  fierce,  fanatical,  vindictive,  and 
furnished  the  Zealots,  so  prominent  in  the  days  of  Ju- 
dea’s dissolution.  (Rabbi  Wise,  Hist.  Heh.^  pg.  47,  48.) 
They  constantly  appealed  to  popular  passions,  and  to 
the  sword  to  decide  their  way.  While  to  its  politic 
adaptation  to  the  feelings  of  the  people,  to  its  cleaving 
to  tradition,  to  its  want  of  instruction  of  a higher  life, 
of  the  school  of  Hillel,  Jesus’  teaching  presented  a 
strong  contrast,  yet  in  much  fie  and  it  was  on  com- 
mon ground.  But  to  the  teaching,  life  and  spirit  of 
the  school  of  Shammai,  Jesus  was  in  direct  antagonism. 
And  their  hostility  to  Him  was  very  pronounced  from 
the  first. 

Didaskalos  is  the  ^ord  used  in  the  gospels  as  the 
Greek  equivalent  for  the  Hebrew  word.  Rabbi.  (J ohn  i, 
38;  XV,  16.)  It  is — except  in  Luke  ii.  46,  doctors,  and 
in  John  iii,  2,  teacher — invariably  translated,  master. 
It  was  the  name  given  to  one  competent  to  teach,  and 
belonged — as  did  nomodidasTcalos^  doctor  of  the  law, 
Luke  V,  17 — to  the  scribes.  Yet  this  title  was  appro- 
priated by  Jesus  Himself  (Matt,  xxvi,  9;  Luke  xvii,  11), 
and  given  to  Him  by  others.  And  though  the  scribes 
themselves,  the  Hillels,  perhaps,  gave  it  to  Him,  yet 
the  appropriation  of  it  by  Him  to  Himself,  which  could 
not  but  excite  the  envy  and  anger  of  the  Shammais, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXXlll 


His  calling  disciples  around  Him,  and  the  widespread 
and  profound  astonishment  and  impression  made  upon 
the  people  by  His  teaching  and  miraculous  cures,  all 
combined  to  fasten  the  attention  of  the  opposing  scribes 
most  closely  upon  Him.  In  the  summer  of  A.  D.  28, 
as  we  have  seen,  they  were  present,  at  Capernaum,  from 
all  parts  of  the  land,  to  judge  for  themselves.  They 
had  already  been  offended  at  Jesus’  refusal  to  allow  one 
of  their  number  to  follow  Him.  (Matt,  viii,  19,  20.) 
Now  their  hostility,  aroused  by  His  presuming  to  for- 
give sins,  was  increased  by  the  impression  His  miracle 
of  healing  made  on  the  people:  ^^They  were  amazed, 
filled  with  fear,  glorified  Grod.” 

They  noted  His  tireless  activity  as  a teacher  in  the 
synagogues,  and  on  the  streets.  They  were  aware  that 
His  great  addresses  came  from  One  never  taught  in 
their  schools,  that  He  handled  the  whole  range  of  sub- 
jects which  they  claimed  as  their  exclusive  domain,  and 
much  that  was  beyond  their  range,  that  He  kept  away 
from  them  and  rejected  their  scholastic  interpretations, 
that  He  taught  with  an  authority  which  they  could  not 
command,  and  with  an  infiuence  which  they  could 
neither  deny  nor  obtain.  This  unexpected  invasion  of 
their  prerogatives  brought  Him  into  collision  with 
them.  His  growing  influence  stung  their  pride.  His 
success,  they  saw,  was  their  overthrow.  He  must  be 
stopped.  Individual  effort  would  fail.  And  as  a 
result  of  deliberated  action,  they  sent  the  first  depu- 
tation from  Jerusalem  into  Galilee — the  narrative  of 
which  we  have  already  studied. 


XXXIV 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


In  the  meantime — summer  of  A.  D.  29 — another 
party  first  appeared  amon^  Jesns’  foes.  (Matt,  xvi,  1-12; 
Mark  viii,  10-15.) 

The  Sadducees  were  as  prominent  in  the  nation  as  were 
the  Pharisees;  and  if  with  the  people  less,  with  the  rul- 
ers, they  were  more  influential  than  their  great  antag- 
onists. They  arose  about  the  same  time,  and  are  first 
mentioned  by  Sirach  (hi,  33;  viii,  1;  xiv,  9;  xvii,  26). 
They  took  their  name,  some  say,  from  Tzaddok^  right- 
eous, and  rested  their  claims  for  distinction  on  their 
zeal  for  morality  (Mishna)  as  the  Pharisees  did  on  their 
zeal  for  the  exact  observance  of  tradition,  and  of  the 
letter  of  the  law.  Others  say  that  they  were  founded 
by  Zaddok,  took  his  name,  and  ever  followed  his  max- 
im, ^^Sever  not  thyself  from  the  majority”  (Talmud).. 
But  if  they  began  with  the  supreme  obligation  of  mor- 
ality, and  of  the  written  law,  they  had,  in  the  time  of 
Christ,  far  declined  from  their  original  principles. 
Their  characteristics  are  mentioned  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment, only  when,  and  as  they  came  into  contact  with 
Jesus’  teaching.  But  these  are  bad  enough.  They 
denied  any  spirit,  any  resurrection,  any  direct  action  to 
God  on  human  beings  or  affairs,  any  extra-mundane 
sphere  for  the  play  of  human  thought.  ^‘The  leaven  of 
the  Sadducees”  is  the  phase  by  which  Jesus  expresses 
their  subtle  and  evil  influence.  Josephus  also  sketches 
them.  They  were  rationalistic  moralists.  They  had  a 
hard  and  narrow  heart,  and  regarded  men  as  tools  for 
their  own  purposes.  They  were  haughty,  arrogant^ 
severe.  They  were  voluptuous  egotists,  who  lived  only 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXXV 


for  pleasure,  and  desired  only  the  material  advantages  of 
power.  Made  np,  as  a party,  of  nobles  and  priests  of  high 
rank,  and  con&titnting  a kind  of  spiritual  aristocracy, 
they  aimed  at  culture,  and  high  social  influence.  If 
the  Pharisees  were  fanatically  patriotic,  the  Sadducees 
were  indifferent  to  their  country’s  fate.  They  were  the 
party  of  the  foreigner.  Setting  aside  the  fervency  and 
austerity  of  true  Judaism,  and  proclaiming  liberalism 
in  human  affairs,  they  found  in  Herod  and  his  family, 
men  after  their  own  heart.  These  princes  had  a de- 
praved conscience,  and  were  men  without  deep  convic- 
tions, destitute  of  true  principle,  enemies  of  true  devo- 
tion, and  parasites  of  Pome.  All  this  suited  the  Sad- 
ducees exactly.  They  readily  submitted  to  their  yoke, 
flattered  them,  courted  them,  and  sustained  them  in 
their  life  and  rule.  (Jos.  Ant,  xviii,  11.  Geiger  Tin- 
schrift^  pg.  104). 

Though,  as  a party,  they  were  not  directly  charge- 
able with  Jesus’  death,  yet  in  the  Sanhedrim  they  were 
all  powerful.  ‘^Only  the  Levitically  clean,”  i,  6.,  priests, 
Levites,  and  those  whose  daughters  might  marry  priests, 
^^could  sit  as  judges  in  capital  cases.”  (Mishna.)  And 
these,  at  the  time  of  Jesus’  trial,  were,  almost  without 
exception,  Sadducees.  (Acts  v,  17.) 

Up  to  this  time  they  had  looked  upon  Jesus  with  in- 
difference, if  not  contempt.  He  had  not  come  into 
collision  with  them.  But  they  may  have  been  set 
against  Him  by  the  ^members  of  the  Sanhedrim.  Or 
His  teaching  may  have  aroused  their  hostility.  Now 
they  unite  with  the  Pharisees  against  Him.  They 


XXX  vi 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


tempt  Him  to  give  a sign  from  heaven.  He  refused. 
Then  turning  to  His  disciples  He  warned  them  to  beware 
of  the  leaven  of  the  Sadducees,  which  He  calls  the 
leaven  of  Herod. 

The  plot  to  destroy  Him  secretly  (see  pg.  23j  was 
confined  to  the  Pharisees  of  Capernaum  and  its  vicinity. 
Between  them,  and  the  Pharisees  of  Jerusalem,  who 
had  also  pronounced  against  Him,  an  active  correspon- 
dence had  been  carried  on.  A deputation  of  the  syna- 
gogue in  the  city,  representing  all  the  resident  Phari- 
sees and  scribes,  had  already  appeared  in  Galilee,  to 
consult  with  those  there  how  to  end  Jesus’  work  and 
life  at  once.  (See  pg.  27.)  How  the  Sadducees  appear. 
Thus  all  the  leading  classes — the  enemies  in  Galilee 
and  those  in  Jerusalem,  the  Judaism  of  the  School  and 
Temple — were  arrayed  against  Him  in  solid  column. 
With  the  exception  of  the  nobler  type  of  Judaism — 
which,  whether  or  not  receiving  Him  as  Messiah,  were 
free  from  all  hostility — the  conspiracy  was  general. 

And  the  reasons  for  this  hostility  and  rejection,  as 
they  appear  thus  far,  may  be  briefiy  summed  up.  The 
lowliness  of  His  birth  and  parentage,  as  contrasted  with 
His  claims  (John  vii,  27,  41);  His  utter  setting  aside 
of  class  distinctions,  rejecting  one  scribe  who  proffered 
his  assistance,  and  selecting  His  apostles  from  the  poor 
and  lowly;  His  exercise  of  authority  over  the  Temple, 
and  His  exhibition  of  power;  His  claims  to  be  the 
Messiah — a fact  which  they  viewed  with  amazement 
and  horror;  His  calling  sinners  to  repentance;  His  as- 
sociation with  publicans,  whom  they  regarded  as  trait- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXXVll 


ors  to  the  nation,  and  false  to  God,  and  with  sinners, 
whom  they  regarded  as  Pariahs — both  acts  being  a 
shock  to  their  deepest  convictions  and  prejudices;  His 
great  and  growing  influence  with  the  people,  and  with 
some  great  families,  as  Jairus’;  His  constant  exposure 
of  all  unreality,  which  was  a constant  rebuke  of  their 
hypocracy;  and  the  fact,  especially,  that  His  life  and 
teaching,  unless  neutralized,  would  be  a death-blow  to 
their  influence,  honor,  and  sources  of  wealth;  all  these 
things  helped  to  swell  the  tide  of  hostility.  To  these  must 
be  added  His  supposed  offense  against  the  Sabbath.  On 
this  point  He  and  the  chiefs  of  the  nation  were  in  con- 
stant collision.  Legal  institutions  had  surrounded  that 
day  with  the  most  solemn  sanctions.  It  was  regarded  hf 
all  Jews  as  holy,  and  as  essential  to  faith  and  worship. 
It  had  been  made  for  man.  In  the  multiplicity  of 
earthly  toils  and  burdens,  he  so  scatters  himself  that 
he  is  in  danger  of  losing  collectedness  and  rest  of  spirit. 
He,  hence,  needs  to  collect  himself  anew.  And  the 
design  of  the  Sabbath  rest  and  worship  was  to  restore 
the  human  spirit,  distracted  by  earthly  cares,  to  the 
harmony  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  God.  But  the  Pharisees, 
forgetful  of  this  design,  and  not  content  with  the  legal 
sanctions,  hedged  it  round  by  the  most  minute  and 
cumbrous  regulations,  confounded  in  the  public  mind 
their  tyrannical  prescriptions  with  God’s  sanctions, 
constituted  themselves  censors  as  to  its  lawful  observ- 
ance, and  ruled  men  with  it  as  a rod  of  iron.  By  their 
rigid  traditional  rules,  they,  practically,  made  man  for 
the  Sabbath.  Instead  of  a day  of  rest,  it  became  a day 


xxxviii 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


of  most  intolerable  weariness.  Against,  not  the  obliga- 
tion and  right  regard,  but  this  idolatry  of  the  day, 
Jesus  protested  by  act  and  word.  He  would  restore 
the  day  to  its  original  design.  But  His  disregard  of 
their  rules  they  regarded  as  violations  of  God’s  sanc- 
tions, and  so  as  evidence  that  He  was  not  the  Messiah. 
His  protests  aroused  their  envenomed  hate.  They  found 
fault  with  His  disciples  for  eating  with  unwashen 
hands.  They  ascribed  His  power  to  Beelzebub.  They 
constantly  sought  accusations  against  Him.  His  teach- 
ing was  the  death-knell  of  ceremonialism,  so  of  their 
cherished  ideas,  forms  and  authority.  They  would  not 
yield,  so  could  not  but  be  determined  and  vindictive 
foes.  But  not  at  once  could  they  accomplish  their 
bloody  purpose.  For  nothing  as  yet — neither  His  acts 
nor  words,  nor  their  efforts — had  damaged  His  popu- 
larity. This  prevented  His  foes  from  hurting  Him. 
They  could  only  wait  and  watch  until  some  act  on  His 
part,  or  some  charge  in  the  people,  should  put  Him 
into  their  power. 

All  this  Jesus  knew.  In  the  summer  of  A.  D.  29, 
He  began  to  show  to  His  disciples  that  He  must  go  up 
to  Jerusalem,  and  there  be  rejected  of  the  elders,  chief 
priests  and  scribes,  suffer  many  things  from  them,  and 
be  killed.  And  in  the  following  autumn,  and  in  March, 
A.  D.  30,  He  repeats  the  announcement  of  Ilis  death, 
with  the  additional  words  of  His  betrayal,  and  of  the 
readiness  of  the  chief  priests  to  negotiate  for  it.  (Matt, 
xvi,  21;  xvii,  22,  23;  Mark  viii,  31;  ix,  30,  31;  Luke 
ix,  22,  43,  44.)  Hot  the  Pharisees,  nor  Herodians,  nor 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


XXXIX 


the  Sadducees,  as  a party,  but  elders,  priests  and  scribes, 
and  they  alone,  were  to  be  the  active  agents  in  the  deed 
of  death.  Besides  the  special  motives  of  each  class — • 
the  priests,  becanse  He  laid  greater  stress  on  obedience 
than  sacrifice;  the  elders,  becanse  He  jndged  tradition 
by  revelation;  the  scribes,  becanse  He  maintained  the 
spirit  instead  of  the  letter  of  the  law — all  shared  a 
common  hatred  to  One  who  constantly  shocked  their 
prejndices,  and  hnmbled  their  pride.  Fnrther,  they 
.were,  the  rnlers.  The  ntter  incompatability  of  their 
rnle  with  that  seen  in  the  teaching  of  Jesns,  convinced 
them  that  if  He  sncceeded  they  mnst  abdicate  sover- 
eignty over  the  pnblic  mind,  and  snbmit  to  become  His 
followers.  Fnrther,  they  had  a dread  of  innovation, 
and  a real  fear  of  offending  the  Boman  power.  The 
national  existence  was  on  a precarions  foundation. 
Caesar  conld,  by  a word,  annihilate  both  it  and  the  re- 
ligions constitntion.  They  feared  that  Jesns  might 
head  a tnmnlt,  and  this  Pilate  wonld  pnt  down  merci- 
lessly. 

We  resnme  the  narrative.  Jesns’  brothers  recognized 
His  claims  and  works;  bnt  conld  not  receive  Him,  with 
whom  they  had  been  familiar  from  childhood,  as  the 
Messiah.  ^ Why,  if  snch,”  said  they,  ^^fear  to  appear  in 
the  capital,' and  let  the  rulers  decide  upon  yonr  claims?” 
^‘Go  ye,”  said  He,  ‘‘1  go  not  yet,  np  to  the  feast.”  Bnt 
soon  after,  (Oct.,  A.  D.  29),  ^‘He  went  np  in.  secret,”  i,  e, 
not  with  the  pilgrims,  bnt  alone,  incognito,  by  an  ob- 
scnre  path,  and  as  a non-participant  spectator.  The 
hostiles  in  Jernsalem,  whose  feelings  were  well-known 


xl 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


to  the  citizens,  had  sought  Him  from  the  beginning  of 
the  feast.  Where,”  said  tliev;  “is  ekinos.  that  man?” 
Tliey  had  stirred  up  a great  ferment  about  Him.  And 
they  so  terrorized  the  people,  that  feelings  found  ex- 
pression in  murmurings  only.  The  battle  of  words, 
“He  is  a good  Man,”  “Hay,  He  deceiveth  the  people,” 
was  carried  on  in  an  undertone.  Neither  party  dared 
speak  out  before  the  rulers  had  spoken.  And  had  Je- 
sus appeared  in  the  midst  of  this  ferment  there  might 
have  been  an  explosion.  But  after  it  had  calmed,  and 
all  were  in  the  Temple  keeping  the  feast.  He,  knowing 
that  only  when  surrounded  by  a crowd,  part  of  whom 
venerated  Him  as  the  Son  of  David,  could  He  be  free 
from  arrest,  appeared  suddenly  In  their  midst,  and 
taught,  for  the  first  time,  publicly,  in  Jerusalem. 
(John  vii.)  He  brought  before  ton  ochlon^  the  common 
people,  and  the  rulers  also,  (a)  His  doctrine  and  mis- 
sion (John  vii,  25-30),  and,  (b)  His  approaching  end, 
and  its  conseqnences  to  the  Jews  (v.  31-36). 

The  Jews,  i.  the  Sanhedrists,  scribes,  perhaps,  recog- 
nized His  knowledge  and  ability  to  teach.  But  as  no  one 
<could  teach  unless  He  had  first  been  a pupil,  and  then 
an  assistant  of  a Kabbi,  the  last  alone  being  allowed  to 
declare  His  own  sentiments  and  ideas,  and  as  Jesus  had 
never  been  either  pupil  or  assistant,  they  intimated 
that  there  must  be  some  deception  about  His  teaching. 
“How  knoweth  this  man  grammata^  letters,”  especially 
scripture-learning,  “having  never  learned?”  Jesus, 
in  His  answer  to  their  marveling,  says,  that  they  (the 
scribes),  taught  eautoon  from  themselves,  so  with- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xli 


out  the  divine  call  or  communion,  and  to  gain  honor 
from  men;  hence — since  they  claimed  to  teach  for 
God — they  were  conscious  of  inward  falseness:  that 

He  did  not  speak  from  Himself,  but  from,  in  the  name, 
and  by  the  command  of,  God,  whose  honor  alone  He 
sought;  hence,  all  was  reality  and  truth.  Here,  the 
hostiles  gathered  more  closely  around  Him  (v.  19). 
Then  J esus  directly  charged  them  with  going  about  to 
kill  Him.  This  showed  that  they  did  not  keep  the  law. 
And  because  they  did  not  God’s  will,  they  had  no  true 
appreciation  of  God’s  teaching.  Hence,  they  were  hit- 
ter opponents  of  Jesus,  and  this  made  them  incapable 
of  being  honest  judges  of  His  teaching. 

To  this  charge  they  made  no  reply.  But  people, 
pilgrims,  perhaps,  evidently  ignorant  of  any  wicked  de- 
sign,  promptly  repelled  it  as  unfounded,  and  as  evidence 
of  some  hallucination  or  gloomy  suspicion  (v.  20). 
Jesus  suffered  the  insult  to  pass,  and  to  change, 
slightly,  the  form  of  His  argument,  but  in  a way  that 
made  it  more  conclusive.  The  Mosaic  law  of  circum- 
cision, He  argued,  may  come  into  conflict  with  another 
Mosaic  law,  that  of  the  Sabbath.  That  collision,  which 
comes  from  Moses,  forces  you,  in  order  to  avoid  break- 
ing the  law,  to  subordinate  the  Sabbath  to  a higher 
purpose.  And  if  a man  in  that  day  receives  circum- 
cision that  the  law  be  not  broken,  are  ye  angry  at  Me 
because  I,  in  the  healing  of  a man,  have  subordinated 
the  law  of  the  Sabbath  to  the  higher  law  of  mercy? 

This  reply  called  forth  from  some  citizens  present, 
the  candid,  yet  cautiously  put,  avowal  (they  do  not 


xlii  THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

name  Him,)  of  tlie  plot  to  kill  Him,  and  the  inquiry, 
^^Do  the  rulers  know,  indeed,  that  this  is  the  Christ?” 
But  they  were  too  fully  imbued  with  the  hierarchical 
spirit  to  allow  this  candor  more  than  a moment’s 
ascendency.  Eecognizing  the  Messiah  as  a man  super- 
naturally  sent  into  the  world  (v*.  27),  and  declaring  that 
they  knew  whence  Jesus  was,  they  haughtily  used  this 
impression  as  an  evidence  that  Jesus  was  not  the  Mes- 
siah. 

J esus  promptly  met  this  ungracious  inuendo  as  to  His 
obscure  birth.  Ehrozen^  He  cried  out,  ^‘You  know  Me, 
and  whence  I am,  and  that  I was  sent,  but  you  know 
not  Him  who  sent  Me.” 

Then  the  rulers,  urged  on  by  what  the  people  had 
said,  sought  to  seize  Rim,  but  no  man  laid  hands  on 
Him,  for  ^THs  hour  was  not  yet  come.” 

Then,  on  the  same  day,  the  Pharisees,  whom  we  have 
not  seen  for  some  time,  appear.  They  had  been  prompt- 
ly informed  of  the  agitation,  of  the  discussion  of  the 
crowd,  and  of  the  words  of  ‘^the  many”  who  then  be- 
lieved on  Jesus  for  the  first  time — words  indicating  an 
inclination  to  acknowledge  Him  as  the  Messiah — and 
they  unite  with  the  chief  priests  in  sending  officers  to 
arrest  Him,  under  the  judicial  process,  still  pending 
since  His  second  visit  to  Jerusalem  (see  pg.  12-14). 
Their  purpose  was  to  condemn  Him  at  once.  The  officers 
reach  the  Temple,  and  find  Him  teaching.  They  mark 
the  impression  made  on  those  aJcousantes  (emphatic), 
ton  logon^  continuing  to  hear  the  word  with  earnest- 
ness, and  also  the  division  of  sentiment:  ‘‘This  is 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xliii 


surely  the  prophet/’  “This  is  the  Messiah,”  “Shall  the 
Messiah  come  from  Galilee?  Do  not  the  scriptures  say 
that  He  cometh  from  the  seed  of  David,  and  out  of  the 
town  of  Bethlehem?”  They  were  deeply  impressed  by 
these  facts.  They  were  all  awed  into  an  involuntary 
reverence  for  Jesus,  and  they  were  held  back  from  fear  of 
a conflict  with  His  friends.  They  were  fettered  also  by 
the  counsel  of  God.  The  hostiles  would  have  taken  Jesus 
on  their  own  responsibility,  if  they  could  have  done  so. 
And  they  failed  to  rally  the  oflicers,  who  returned  to 
the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees — ^viewed  here  in  the 
Sanhedrim  as  an  unit — and  who  were,  perhaps,  in  full 
session,  waiting  for  Jesus  to  be  brought  to  them  for 
condemnation.  When  asked,  “'Why  have  ye  not  brought 
Him?”  they  replied,“Never  man  spake  like  this  Man”-an 
involuntary  witness  this  to  the  innocence,  perhaps  divini- 
ty, of  Jesus,  and  to  the  superhuman  power  of  His  words. 
The  Pharisaic  party  in  the  Sanhedrim  were  enraged. 
In  haughty  contempt  of  the  people,  they,  in  an  appeal 
to  their  own  party  as  authority,  asked,  “Have  rulers 
(Greek)  believed?”  Hicodemus,  in  reply,  appealed  to 
the  law.  This,  though  it  failed  to  influence  them  to  act 
with  equity,  stopped  the  malicious  action  for  the  pres- 
ent. The  Sanhedrim  separated  in  anger,  and  went 
every  one  to  his  own  home;  and  Jesus  went  to  His 
Mount  of  Olives. 

At  daybreak  next  morning  (John  viii,  2)  (Grk.),  He 
returned  into  the  Temple,  and  the  people  came  to  Him, 
and  He  taught  them.  While  thus  engaged,  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees,  unitedly,  again  attack  them.  They,  in 


Xliv  THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

order  to  accuse  Him,  tempted  Him  to  assume  Judicial 
authority  in  the  case  of  a woman  taken  in  adultery.  * 
That  assumption,  because  an  invasion  of  the  province 
of  the  Sanhedrim,  would  have  brought  Him  into  their 
power.  ‘^Moses,  in  the  law,”  said  they,  ^^commanded 
that  such  should  be  stoned,”  ^‘but  what  sayest  Thou?” 
If  He  had  said  ^^stone  her,”  He  would  have  put  Him- 
self into  the  governor’s  power.  For  they  would  at 
once  have  accused  Him  to  Pilate  of  usurping  the  jus 
gladii^  which  Pome  had,  in  all  conquered  countries, 
reserved  to  herself.  If  He  had  said,  ^^Do  not  stone 
her,”  He  would  have  abrogated  a statute  of  Moses,  and 
thus  would  have  given  the  rulers  evidence  of  hos- 
tility to  the  law.  By  this  they  could  have  inflamed  the 
people  against  Him,  and — since  the  Christ  was  to  re- 
store the  supremacy  of  the  law — have  accused  Him  before 
the  Sanhedrim  as  a false  Messiah.  Thus,  as  afterwards 
by  the  question  of  paying  tribute  to  Caesar,  would  they 
force  Him  to  occupy  a position  of  opposition  either  to 
the  law,  or  to  the  Roman  authority. 

“Let  Him  that  is  without  sin  among  you  {i,  the 
chief  accuser),  first  cast  a stone  at  her,”  i,  execute 
the  law.  This  answer,  in  which  genuine  simplicity 
and  wonderful  art  are  admirably,  combined,  removed 
the  question  from  the  judicial  province  in  which  His 
enemies  had  placed  it,  into  the  moral  sphere.  Nor 
did  it,  in  the  slightest  degree,  impugn  the  Mosaic  ordi- 
nance. And  it  disarmed  the  self -constituted  judges. 


[*  Scholars,  generally,  regard  the  passage,  v.  2-11,  as  an  inter- 
polation. But  the  reality  of  the  occurrence  is  almost  unquestioned.] 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xlv 


pierced  their  hypocrisy,  and  smote  their  consciences. 
Self-convicted,  they  went  out,  one  by  one,  thus  tacitly  ad- 
mitting both  their  malicious  design,  and  their  defeat. 
But  other  Pharisees,  mingled  with  the  crowd,  assailed 
Him  with  this  objection  to  His  testimony  to  Himself, 
that  it  is  not  sufficiently  attested  to  be  worthy  of  faith. 
His  answer:  the  two-fold  testimony  of  (a)  His  own 
consciousness,  and  (b)  the  Father  working  with  Him, 
shown  in  the  agreement  of  the  power  of  God  in  mira- 
cles, and  of  His  word  in  the  Scriptures,  with  the  work  and 
word  of  Jesus:  again  suggested  His  re-arrest  (v.  20).  To 
the  Jews’  question.  Will  He  kill  Himself?  He,  after 
some  other  words,  told  them  plainly  (a)  the  manner  of  His 
death,difted  up, ’(b)  the  guilty  parties,^^Te,”  and  (c)  one  of 
its  results,  the  coming  through  it  to  them  of  the  true 
knowledge  of  Himself,  ^^Te  shall  know  that  I am  He.” 
Many  of  the  Jews,  perceiving  that  the  words  Jesus  had 
spoken  must  be  true,  believed,  i.  e.,  were  inclined  to 
openly  acknowledge  Him  as  the  Messiah.  But  they 
were  Jews  still,  clung  to  the  Jewish  party,  and  shared 
the  Messianic  hopes  of  the  nation.  If  Jesus  would 
satisfy  their  hopes,  they  would  fully  receive  Him. 
To  test  them,  as  He  had  tested  His  Galilean  adherents 
(Jn.  vi).  He  said,  ^Hf  you  continue  steadfast  in  My 
word,  you  shall  be  truly  My  disciples,  and  shall  know 
the  truth,  and  it  shall  make  you  free.”  Thinking  not 
of  national  independence — for  they  saw  Boman  soldiers 
guarding  the  Temple — nor  of  spiritual  superiority,  but 
of — for  the  dignity  of  freedom  shone  on  the  bro\<^  of  all 
the  seed  of  Abraham — the  individual  liberty  which 


xlvi  THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

they,  as,  Jews,  enjoyed,  they  declared  that  they  had 
never  been  in  bondage  to  any  man.  Thus  they  changed 
Jesus’  glorious  promise  of  spiritual  freedom  into  an 
insult:  ^^and  lo!  their  faith  had  already  come  to  an 
end.”  This  was  quickly  followed  by  a hostility  which 
sought  His  death  (vs.  37,  40).  . ^^You  claim,”  said  Je- 
sus, ^^to  be  the  children  of  Grod,  yet  you  hate  Me,  who 
came  from  Him.  Your  aversion  to  the  truth,  hatred  of 
Me,  diabolic  thirst  for  My  blood,  shows  your  voluntary 
sympathy  with,  and  moral  descent  from,  the  devil.” 
Against  His  perfect  holiness,  and  consequently,  truth- 
fulness, they  could  not  say  one  word  (v.  46).  But  His 
words  so  moved  their  wrath  that  it  burst  forth  in  an 
unrestrained  stream  of  opprobrious  epithets:  “Thou  art 
a Samaritan,  i,  ^.,  enemy  of  Israel,  and  hast  a demon,  i,  ^., 
art  raving  mad.”  And  when,  presently,  after  other  words,  ‘ 
He  announced  His  self — so  eternal — existence,  “Before 
Abraham  was,  ego  eimi^  I am,”  nothing  was  left  to 
them  but  to  worship — or  to  stone  Him.  Their  inward 
rage  broke  forth  in  a murderous  movement.  “They 
took  up  stones  to  stone  Him.”  But  His  hour  had  not 
yet  come.  The  shield  of  God  was  His  protection.  He 
^‘elcruiee^  hid  Himself,”  thus  terminating  their  most 
violent  opposition.  Henceforth,  He  gradually  aban-* 
doned  the  field  of  battle  to  His  adversaries,  until  the 
other  special  ehruhee  (John  xii,  36),  with  which  He 
closed  His  public  testimony  in  Israel. 

But  as  He  passed  by  in  His  escape.  He  wrought 
that  miracle  on  a blind  man  which  set  the  whole  city  in 
commotion  (John  ix).  The  man  was  brought  to  the 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xlvii 


Pharisees,  not  as  members  of  the  Sanhedrim,  but  as  the 
party  which  upheld  the  traditional  Sabbath-day  observ- 
ance, and  to  the  committee  of  management,  or  repre- 
tatives  of  that  party.  His  words  made  a division 
among  them.  Thereupon  the  Jews,  so  relentlessly  hos- 
tile to  Jesus,  stepped  to  the  front,  and  conducted  the 
investigation.  Their  purpose  was  to  get  fresh  grounds 
of  accusation  against  Him.  To  gain  their  end,  they 
attempted  to  annihilate  fact  by  dogma.  Yanquished 
by  the  remorseless  logic  of  facts,  they,  enraged,  drove 
the  man  out  of  the  hall,  and  excommunicated  him  from 
the  synagogue  (v.  23).  Jesus’  words  to  this  noble  con- 
fessor led  some  Pharisees  to  ask  Him  ironically,  ‘^Are 
we,” — the  learned — among  the  morally,  ^‘blind?”  “You 
say  you  see,  therefore  your  sin  rernaineth,”  was  Jesus’ 
crushing  reply. 

Then,  in  the  three  pictures  of  the  Shepherd,  the 
Door,  and  the  Good  Shepherd  (John  x,  1-18),  of  each 
feature  of  which  the  application  was  directly  felt.  He 
contrasts  Himself  with  the  Pharisees.  He  was  the 
Door  by  which  persons  entered  into  the  fold,  the  Good 
Shepherd  which  folded,  fed  and  gave  life  for  the  sheep. 
They  had  exercised  the  most  despotic  authority  within 
the  theocracy;  had  interposed  between  God  and  the 
soul;  had  declared  themselves  the  sole  medium  by 
which  He  could  be  approached;  had  made  the  under- 
standing of  scripture  their  own  monopoly  (Luke  xi,  53); 
had  distributed  certificates  of  orthodoxy  and  salvation; 
and  had  arbitrarily  disposed  of  heaven.  (Matt,  xiii,  14; 
xxiii,  13.)  They  were  thieves  and  robbers. 


xlvdii 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


With  these  words  sounding  in  their  ears,  with  the 
consciousness  of  being  humiliatingly  baffled  in  every 
effort  to  entrap  Him  into  some  word  or  into  some  acts 
against  the  law,  and  with  the  old  mortification  and  bit- 
terness of  feeling,  intensified  by  this  miracle  wrought 
almost  before  their  eyes,  Jesus  left  them  to  judge  for 
themselves  who  He  was,  and  returned  to  Galilee. 

It  was  now  November,  A.  D.  29.  The  time  was 
rapidly  approaching  when  He  must  assert  His  charac- 
ter and  mission  before  the  whole  nation,  and  be  re- 
ceived, or  rejected,  as  such.  This  must  be  a national 
act.  He,  hence,  must  go  to  Jerusalem,  publicly,  and  in 
His  offlcial  character.  He  sent  messengers,  and  after- 
wards other  seventy  also,  to  go,  two  and  two,  before  His 
face,  into  every  place  whither  He  Himself,  would  come. 
(Luke  ix,  51-66;  x,  1-13.)  And  while  on  His  way 
through  Perea,  the  first  fresh  manifestation  of  hostility 
presented  itself.  One  of  the  lawyers  stood  up  and 
tempted  Him,  but  failed  to  involve  Him  in  a conflict 
with  the  law.  (Luke  x,  25.)  Though,  as  a class,  law- 
yers had  already,  as  far  back  as  midsummer,  A.  D.  28, 
rejected  the  counsel  of  God  against  themselves  (Luke 
vii,-30),  this  is  the  first  time  that  they  appear  openly 
among  His  foes..  And  a word  as  to  their  character  and 
calling  is  in  place. 

Though  lawyers  might  be  scribes  (Matt,  xxiii,  35; 
Mark  xii,  28),  yet  all  scribes  were  not  lawyers.  Scribes 
had,  lawyers  had  not,  a seat  in  the  Sanhedrim.  The 
‘‘also”  of  “also  one  of  them”  (Luke  xi,  44-46),  shows 
that  the  two  callings  were  distinct.  The  title,  nomikos, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xlix 


was  used  in  the  modern  sense  of  the  term:  ^^Zenas,  the 
lawj^er”  (Tit.  iii,  18).  Lawyers  were  Mosaic  jurists, 
learned  in  Jewish  jurisprudence,  and  professional  plead- 
ers in  Jewish  courts.  All  of  them,  perhaps,  belonged 
to  the  party  of  Pharisees.  (Matt,  xxii,  35.)  They  par- 
took of  their  hostility  to  Jesus.  And  though  they  did 
not,  for  they  could  not,  sit  on  Jesus’  trial,  yet  their 
efforts  to  seek  an  accusation  against  Him,  was  one  of 
the  things  that  helped  to  bring  it  on.  . 

In  Dec.  of  that  year,  A.  D.  29,  a Pharisee,  from 
whatever  motive,  invited  Jesus  to  breakfast  (Greek) 
with  him.  (Luke  xi,  37-54;  xii,  1.)  No  sooner  were 
they  at  the  table  than  the  host  expressed  surprise  that 
J esus  had  not  first  washed.  Then,  against  them  and 
the  scribes  conjointly,  Jesus  uttered  His  first  woe — the 
prelude  of  those  subsequently  given:  ^^they  were  hypo- 
crites, making  the  outside  clean,  while  within  they  were 
full  of  ravening  and  wickedness;  they  tithed  all  man- 
ner of  herbs,  but  neglected  judgment  and  the  love  of 
God;  they  were  graves,  of  whose  existence  men  were 
not  aware.”  And  when  one  of  the  lawyers  present,  hear- 
ing this  terrible  denunciation,  said,  “Master,  in  this 
Thou  reproachest  us  also,”  He  pronounced  upon  them  a 
succession  of  woes.  These  things  touched  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees  present  to  the  quick.  They  feared,  they 
hated  the  Man.  Lying,  like  some  wild  beasts  of  prey, 
in  wait  for  Him,  they  sought  to  catch  something  out  of 
His  mouth  by  which  they  might  accuse  Him,  and  they 
began  to  urge  Him  vehemently,  and  to  provoke  Him 
to  speak  many  things.  But  they  caught  not  a word 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


? 

^ which  they  could  use  against  Him.  He  continued  His 
journey  through  Herod’s  kingdom.  Certain  Pharisees, 
to  gratify  their  malice,  told  Hini  of  Herod’s  purpose  to 
kill  Him  if  He  did  not  speedily  leave  his  jurisdiction. 
To  the  manliness,  calmness,  patience  of  His  reply,  they 
could  give  no  answer.  (Luke  xiii,  31-33.)  On  He 
journeyed,  and  about  Dec.  20th,  A.  D.  29,  He  reached 
J erusalem.  The  last  time  He  had  gone  up  quietly  and 
privately.  How  He  went  up  publicly — preceded,  per- 
haps, by  some  of  the  seventy.  The  question  put  to 
Him  by  the  Jews  (John  x,  24),  indicates  that  their  at- 
tention had  been  drawn,  freshly  and  pointedly,  to  Him 
as  the  Messiah — perhaps  from  His  heralds,  thus  an- 
nouncing Him.  He,  knowing  that  their  rejection  of 
Him  would  be  speedily  followed  by  their  putting  Him 
to  death,  is  about  to  present  Himself  to  the  rulers — 
elders,  priests  and  scribes — to  see  whether  they  would 
recognize  and  receive  Him  as  the  Messiah. 

This  visit  was  made  at  the  feast  of  Dedication.  This 
was  a national  commemoration  of  the  deliverance  by 
Maccabeus,  from  the  oppression  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes, 
and  of  the  cleansing  of  the  Temple  from  his  profana- 
tion. (1  Macc.  iv,  Josephus’  Ant.,  xii,  7,  6.)  This  was 
a most  significant  time  for  J esus  to  make  a last  appeal 
to  His  nation,  before  the  Passover.  He  presented  Him- 
self in  the  Temple.  He  walked  in  Solomon’s  porch, 
situated  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  court,  above  the  val- 
ley of  Jehoshaphat.  The  Jews  ehuJdoosan^  surrounded 
Him — thus  being  between  Him  and  Ilis  disciples  and 
friends.  Their  action  showed  their  fixed  determination. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


li 


Tired  of  replies,  which  seemed  to  them  ambiguous,  they 
would  Hot  now  set  Him  at  liberty  until  He  had  spoken 
the  decisive  word.  ^^How  long,’’  they  asked  Him, 
Heen  psucheen  heemoon  aireis^  wilt  Thou  raise  our 
mind;”  that  is,  inflame,  without  satisfying,  our  na- 
tional hopes.  ^^If  Thou  be  the  Christ,  tell  us  boldly.” 
The  term  ‘^Christ”  suggested  such  different  ideas  to 
Him  and  to  them,  that  the  question  was  a perplexing 
one.  Did  He  say.  Yes,  they  would  not  understand 
Him  aright.  Nor  could  He  say  Ho,  for  He  was  the 
true  Messiah.  With  marvelous  wisdom  He  appealed 
to  His  public  testimonies,  which  they  had  not  received, 
and  to  the  works  which  He  did  in  His  Father’s  name. 
Then,  after  certain  words.  He  declares,  ‘‘JEgo  Icai  ho 
pateer  en  esmen^  I and  My  Father  are  One,”  in  unity  of 
nature,  so  of  will,  power  and  property.  This  would  be 
blasphemy,  if  not  a fact.  The  Jews  so  regarded  it. 
Two  months  before,  eemn^  they  had  lifted  up  stones, 
such  as  they  found  about  the  Temple  court,  to  stone 
Him.  This,  however,  was  a threat,  rather  than  a de- 
termined purpose.  (John  viii,  69.)  But  now,  ebastasarij 
they  carried  them.  They  may  have  brought  them  with 
them;  or  they  had  gone  some  distance  to  get  them. 
This  shows  the  fixed  purpose  to  do  what  before  they 
had  only  threatened,  and  clearly  exhibits  the  rapid 
growth  of  their  malice  in  the  past  two  months.  They 
declare  that  they  stone  Him  for  blasphemy,  in  that, 
being  a man.  He  makes  Himself  God.  From  this 
charge  He,  by  an  appeal  to  Scripture  and  to  His  works, 
clears  Himself.  They  then  sought  again  to  arrest  and 


lii 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


bring  Him  before  the  Sanhedrim  for  Judgment.  But 
He  broke  through  the  circle  which  they  had  formed 
around  Him,  and  escaped  to  Perea,  the  only  place  of 
refuge  now  open  to  Him  from  the  malice  of  the  Jews, 
but  where  He  was  exposed  to  the  anger  of  Herod  (John 
X,  39,  40;  Luke  xiii,  31,  32),  and  to  the  assaults  of  the 
Pharisees.  Again  they  raise  the  question  of  healing- 
on  the  Sabbath  day.  And  again  were  they  silenced  by 
His  home-thrust,  ‘^Will  you  not  pull  an  ox  out  of  the 
pit  on  that  day?” 

While  yet  in  Perea,  He  was  called  (Jan.-Peb.,  A.  D. 
30,)  to  Bethany,  about  a mile  distant  from  Jerusalem, 
by  tidings  of  the  sickness  of  Lazarus.  When  He 
reached  the  village  Lazarus  had  been  four  days  dead. 
He  at  once  called  him  forth  alive  out  of  the  tomb. 
This  stupendous  fact  exerted  a diverse  impression  upon 
the  Judeans  present.  Many  of  them  believed  in  Jesus. 
But  some  at  once  carried  the  news  of  the  miracle  to  the 
Pharisees  in  the  city.  The  tidings  spread  rapidly.  The 
excitement  was  intense.  The  fact  could  not  be  denied. 
The  influence  over  the  public  mind,  which  it  gave 
Jesus,  was  immense.  Unless  He  was  stopped,  none 
could  tell  where  it  would  stop.  Already  had  the  pen- 
alty of  confessing  Him  as  the  Christ,  excommunication, 
failed  to  destroy  it.  The  general  impression  in  the  city 
w^as  tliat  His  enemies  would  not  rest  until  they  had 
killed  Him.  (Mark  iii,  6;  John  v,  16-18;  vii,  25,  &c.) 
But  hitherto  all  their  efforts  to  get  Him  out  of  the  way 
had  failed.  The  enthusiasm  which  the  Bethany  mira- 
cle aroused  in  the  people  was  the  last  drop  which  makes 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


liii 


the  full  vessel  overflow.  Their  rage  knew  no  bounds. 
If  they  would  not  yield  to  such  a proof  of  Messiahship, 
they  must  kill.  Their  flerce  purpose  was  flxed  to  get 
Rim  out  of  the  way  at  once.  The  chief  priests  and 
Pharisees  hastily  gathered  Sunedrion  (the  absence  of 
the  article  indicates  that  the  word  is  here  a proper 
name,)  the  Sanhedrim  together.  The  imminence  of  the 
danger  and  the  certainty  that  something  must  be  done 
are  strongly  expressed  in  the  two  present  terms, 

He  is  doing  many  miracles,  and  in  ti  poioumen^  what 
do  we?”  ^Tf  we  let  Him  alone,  all  will  believe  on  Him.” 
His  popularity,  then,  will  lead  to  a popular  rising. 
And  the  Homans  will  use  this  as  a pretext  for  destroy- 
ing our  capital.  Temple  and  national  polity,  and  blot- 
ting out  our  name  from  the  map  of  the  world.  Then, 
what  will  become  of  our  power? — a thought  brought 
out  forcibly  by  the  position  of  the  pronoun,  hemoon^ 
before  the  two  substantives,  ^‘place,”  ^^nation”  (Godet). 
And  it  is  better  that  He  should  die,  so  said  Oaiaphas,  than 
that  the  nation  should  perish  through  Him.  To  this 
decision  the  Sanhedrim  came — the  flxed  result  of  the 
purpose  formed — as  we  have  seen — when  Jesus  was  be- 
fore them  in  the  first  year  of  His  ministry.  This  de- 
cision implied  that  His  death  must  be  accomplished  in 
the  legal  way.  This  could  be  done  only  by  the  Roman 
authorities.  He,  then,  their  religious  victim,  must  be 
disguised  as  a political  offender.  From  that  day  for- 
ward, they  consulted,  mnehouleusanto — all  subsequent 
meetings  of  Sanhedrim  had  only  one  object,  i,  e, — how  to 
effect  their  purpose.  Henceforth,  He  was  a doomed 


liv 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


man.  And  with  Him,  Lazarus,  too.  For,  through  his 
resurrection,  many  of  the  inhabitants  of  Judea  and 
Jerusalem — the  people  on  whom  the  rulers  depended — 
were  believing  on  Jesus  (John  xii,  10,  11).  Hence- 
forth, a price  was  on  His  head.  It  may  be  that  it  was 
at  this  time  that  the  proclamation,  to  which  John, 
possibly,  alludes  (xi,  17)  and  of  which  the  Babylonian 
Gemara  thus  speaks,  was  issued:  ‘^an  officer  having, 
during  the  forty  preceding  days,  publicly  proclaimed 
that  this  man,  who,  by  His  imposture,  had  seduced  the 
people,  ought  to  be  stoned,  and  that  any  one  who  could 
say  aught  in  His  defense  was  to  come  forward.  But 
no  one  doing  so.  He  was  hanged  on  the  evening  of  the 
Passover.”  (Lightfoot,  Hot,  Heb,  Talm,^  pg.  460.) 

The  candid  judgment  of  history  must  be,  that  truth, 
justice,  Jesus,  were  sacrificed  to  a selfish  policy.  They 
had  no  faith  in  Him  as  the  Messiah,  nor  in  His  ability 
to  establish  a Kingdom.  They  could  not  deny  His  in- 
fluence and  popularity.  They  believed,  honestly,  per- 
haps, that  an  insurrection  might  occur,  and  that  its 
outcome  would  be  the  ruin  of  the  nation.  But  this  an- 
ticipated disaster  to  the  nation  troubled  them  only  in 
so  far  as  it  affected  themselves  personally.  Their  own 
total  overthrow  was  involved  in  that  of  the  nation.  For 
this  they  were  concerned.  And  in  the  vain  hope  that 
they  would  thereby  save  themselves,  they  determined 
that  J esus  should  die. 

He,  therefore,  walked  no  more  openly  among  the 
Jews.  Going  into  the  country  near  to  the  wilderness. 
He  there  remained  with  His  disciples  until  early  in 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Iv 


March.  His  hour.  He  knew,  had  now  come,  when  He 
must  die  in  Jerusalem.  He  determined  to  enter  the 
city  with  all  publicity.  Leaving  Ephraim,  He  went  to 
the  Jordan  valley,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Jericho  He 
fell  in  with  some  of  the  pilgrims  on  their  way  to  the 
city  to  purify  themselves  for  the  approaching  feast  of 
the  Passover.  Those  who  had  already  reached  the  city, 
had  heard  of  the  order  for  His  arrest,  and  inquired  among 
themselves,  as  they  stood  in  the  Temple,  ‘^Think  ye 
that  He  will  come  to  the  feast?”  They  knew  not  that 
He  was  then  on  the  way.  His  disciples  accompanied 
Him.  In  His  manner  and  appearance  there  was  some- 
thing that  amazed  and  awed  them  (Mark  x,  32).  Be- 
fore they  reached  Jericho,  He  took  the  twelve  apart 
from  the  pilgrims,  and  with  a greater  particularity  than 
previously.  He  told  them,  for  the  third  time,  of  His 
approaching  death  at  Jerusalem.  (Matt,  xx,  17-19; 
Mark  x,  33,  34;  Lukexviii,  31-34.)  On  Friday,  March 
31st,  He  reached  Bethany.  In  this  sweet  retired  spot, 
where  He  had  raised  Lazarus  from  the  dead,  and  from 
whose  contiguous  wooded  slopes  He  afterwards  ascended 
to  heaven.  He  rested  on  the  Sabbath.  And  from  the 
quiet  seclusion  of  Mary’s  home.  He,  on  Sunday,  April 
2d,  started  on  His  solemn  and  triumphal  entry  into  the 
city.  It  was  a wonderful  procession,  whose  significance 
appears  in  the  fact  that  the  record  of  it  is  given  by  ail 
the  evangelists.^  So,  now,  as  the  pilgrims,  already  in 

[*  The  Synoptists  mention  the  fact,  hut  give  no  adequate 
reason  for  the  outburst  of  enthusiasm.  This  was  the  resurrection 
of  Lazarus,  an  incident  given  only  by  John.] 


Ivi 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


the  city,  heard  that  J esHS  was  coming,  they  caught  the 
enthusiasm  of  those  accompanying  Him.  Taking 
branches  of  palm  trees  in  their  hands,  they  poured  out 
in  a vast  stream  to  meet  Him.  The  two  streams  met 
at  the  descent  of  the  Mount  of  Olives.  Many  spread 
their  garments  in  the  way.  Others  cut  down  branches 
from  the  trees,  and  strewed  them  in  the  way.  And 
when  Jesus  was  now  at  the  descent  of  the  Mount,  over- 
looking the  city,  there  went  up,  from  the  vast  throng,  a 
mighty  voice  of  praise  to  God;  loud  Hozannas  to  the 
Son  of  David;  and  shouts  of  welcome:  ^‘Blessed  be  the 
King  of  Israel,  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.” 
Their  actions,  aspirations  and  rejoicings,  expressed  in 
symbols  and  songs,  shows  the  meaning  of  this  demon- 
stration. It  was  the  Messiah,  whom  the  people  wel- 
comed and  saluted  in  the  person  of  Jesus.  And  for 
the  first  time  in  His  ministry,  Jesus  accepted  the  hom- 
age offered  Him,  and  the  popular  demonstration  in  His 
favor.  He  came  as  a King,  and  received,  as  rightly 
belonging  to  Him,  the  Kingly  honors  and  acclamations 
which  the  people  paid.  It  was  His  coronation  for 
death;  His  formal  assertion  of  His  Messianic  claims; 
His  last  appeal  to  the  rulers  and  nation  to  receive  Him 
in  His  royal  character.  As  He  passed  along  the  streets 
^^all  the  city  was  moved.”  “Who  is  this?”  the  citizens 
inquire.  “Jesus,  the  prophet  of  Nazareth  of  Galilee,” 
the  multitude  reply.  And  this  local  pride  of  the  Gali- 
leans in  Him  set  the  citizens  of  Jerusalem  against  Him, 
as  His  being  saluted  as  King  alarmed  the  Saddu- 
cees,  who,  if  not  friendly  to  Home,  feared  her  power, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Ivii 


and  dreaded  her  nnpi tying  wrath;  and  His  being 
sainted  as  the  Christ  filled  the  Pharisees  anew  with 
rage.  They  said  among  themselves,  behold” — 

alluding  to  the  unexpected  spectacle  just  witnessed — 
Hhe  world,  a^eelthen^  is  gone  away  after  Him.”  Against 
this,  an  accomplished  fact,  “you  have  accomplished 
nothing.”  And  this  mutual  reproaching  of  each  other 
points  out  the  bearing  of  the  entry  upon  the  final  catas- 
trophe. They  felt  how  impotent  they  were  in  the  fact 
of  this  enthusiastic  and  imposing  demonstration.  They 
saw  that  the  very  ground  was  giving  way  beneath  their 
feet.  Yet,  at  least  on  that  day  nothing  could  be  done. 

Jesus  having  entered  into  the  Temple,  and  “looked 
around  about  on  all  things”  (Mark),  as  if  to  see  whether 
they  were  done  according  to  His  Father’s  will,  went 
out,  and  returned  to  Bethany  with  the  twelve  (Luke 
xix).  On  the  next  day,  Monday,  April  3d,  He  returned 
into  the  Tempie,  and  cleansed  it  the  second  time,  the 
enthusiasm  of  the  people  allowing  no  interference  from 
the  chief  priests.  Then  followed  the  healing  of  the 
blind  and  lame,  and  the  children’s  shouts,  “Hozanna  to 
the  Son  of  David.”  These  wonderful  things  occurring 
in  the  Temple,  quickened,  intensely,  the  already  fiery 
rage  of  the  chief  priests  and  scribes.  They  remonstra- 
ted. They,  and  the  chiefs  of  the  nation,  (Luke  xix,  47,) 
sought  to  kill  Him.  But  they  could  not  find  what  to 
do;  nor  could  they  lay  hands  on  Him,  for  they  feared 
Him,  because  of  His  immense  influence  with  the 
people. 

On  the  next  day,  Tuesday,  April  4th,  as  He  was  walk- 


Iviii 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ing  and  teaching  in  the  Temple,  He  was  confronted  by  a 
deputation  from  the  Sanhedrim  (Alexander,  Meyer).  For 
the  phrase,  “the  chief  priests,  the  elders  and  the  scribes,’’ 
denotes  the  Sanhedrim  acting  officially  (Lightfoot). 
It  was  influential  in  numbers  and  position,  being  headed, 
not  improbably,  by  Caiaphas,  the  official,  and  Annas, 
the  legitimate,  High  Priest.  They  demanded  of  Him 
by  what  authority  He  had  cleansed  the  Temple,  and  in 
it  had  wrought  cures,  and  allowed  the  children  to  shout 
Hozanna  to  Himself  as  the  Messiah?  And  who  gave  it? 
They  had  a right  to  demand  the  credentials  of  one  ex- 
ercising the  prophetic  function.  But  as  Jesus  had  al- 
ready abundantly  authenticated  His  claims  and  mis- 
sion, this  action  could  only  be  the  result  of  impotent 
passion,  these  inquiries  only  hostile  in  design.  The  ob- 
ject evidently  was  to  involve  Him  in  a criminal  charge. 

Jesus,  in  reply,  asked  them  a question,  “Whence  was 
the  baptism  of  John?”  which  placed  them  in  an  in- 
extricable dilemma.  If  they  said,  “from  heaven,”  He 
would  ask,  “Why  did  ye  not,  then,  believe  him?”  If 
of  men,  they  broke  with  the  people;  and  this,  they 
could  not  afford  to  do.  They  saw  that  they  were  caught. 
They  could  extricate  themselves  only  by  a desperate 
step,  a confession  of  ignorance  which  was  hypocritical. 
They,  after  consultation,  declared  they  could  not  tell. 
4‘Heither  tell  I you,”  said  Jesus,  “by  what  authority  I 
do  these  things.”  Thus  did  He  compel  them  to  feel 
the  burden  of  their  guilt  in  rejecting  the  testimony  of 
John.  Then,  in  the  parables  of  “the  Vineyard,”  “the 
Two  Sons,”  “the  Wicked  Husbandmen,”  and  “the  Mar- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


lix 


riage  of  the  king’s  son,”  He  pointed  out  to  them  the 
trust  and  responsibility  of  their  office,  denounced  their 
faithlessness  and  fearful  wickedness  as  God’s  laborers, 
in  turning  His  vineyard  into  their  private  possession, 
pronounced  their  coming  deposition,  degradation  and 
displacement  by  strangers  better  than  themselves — ^‘the 
Kingdom  of  God  will  be  taken  from  you,  and  given  to 
others,”  and  the  destruction  of  the  city  and  system  for  its 
sins  and  crimes — ^^upon  both,  the  rejected  stone  would 
fall,  and  crush  them  to  pieces.”  Then  He  demonstrated 
anew  His  own  Messianic  power  and  right  to  the  King- 
dom. They  had  come  to  annihilate  Him  by  a stroke  of 
authority.  But  He  had  annihilated  their  authority. 
He  had  shown  them  that  the  reality  of  their  power  had 
been  forfeited,  and  that,  unfit  to  discharge  the  duties  of 
office,  nothing  now  remained  but  the  form.  (And  this 
is  the  light  in  which  He  regarded  the  Sanhedrim  dur- 
ing His  trial.)  They  saw  that  He  had  spoken  these 
parables  against  them.  Their  rage  knew  no  bounds. 
They  sought  to  lay  hands  upon  Him,  but  fear  of  the 
people  restrained  them.  They  left  Him,  humiliated  by 
defeat,  and  He  remained  in  the  Temple  its  actual  Lord. 

On  the  same  day  a final  and  systematic  effort  was 
made  to  entrap  Him  in  His  words.  In  this  effort  the 
Pharisees  were  the  leaders.  Their  purpose  was  to  get 
hold  of  something  through  which  they  ‘^might  deliver 
Him  unto  the  power  and  authority  of  the  governor.” 
They,  after  consultation,  sent  a committee  of  their  own 
members,  and  with  them  certain  of  the  Herodians  then 
in  the  city.  Though  Jesus’  success  for  the  present  con- 


lx 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ceriied  only  the  ruling  authorities  in  Jerusalem,  yet 
Galilee,  and  Herod’s  government  there,  might  become 
involved.  To  stop  such  a contingency,  these  men  sink 
their  hostility  to  the  Pharisees  in  their  hostility  to 
Jesus.  They,  to  mask  their  design,  sent  high-born, 
academical  youth,  who,  feigning  themselves  as  just 
men,  students  of  casuisty,  come  as  spies.  With  hypo- 
critical cant  they  express  a high  respect  for  His  person. 
They  flatter  His  wisdom,  independence,  fldelity  to  truth. 
They  ask,  “Is  it  lawful  to  give  tribute  to  Caesar?”  If 
He  said  “Yes,”  then  the  Pharisees  would  accuse  Him 
to  the  people  as  One  who  struck  down  their  national 
beliefs.  Thus  would  they  be  alienated.  If  He  said 
“Ho,”  then  the  Herodians  would  accuse  Him  to  Caesar, 
and  He  would  thus  bring  down  on  Himself  the  crush- 
ing power  of  Eomf.  But  He  said  neither  word.  By 
His  “render  unto  Caesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar’s,, 
and  to  God  the  things  that  are  God’s,”  they  were  com- 
pletely vanquished,  and  withdrew. 

The  Sadducees.  then  tried  their  skill.  Equally  dis- 
guised as  to  purpose,  they  were  more  direct  and  out- 
spoken. They  put  a skeptical,  scofiing  question  about 
the  resurrection,  whose  solution,  they  were  sure,  would 
defy  His  power.  But  His  reply  was  triumphant.  Even 
certain  scribes  expressed  their  satisfaction.  The  Sad- 
ducees were  put  to  silence,  and  withdrew. 

Having  failed  to  involve  Him  in  a political  charge,  the 
Pharisees  again  come  forward.  How  they  try  to  involve 
Him  in  a charge  ot  blasphemy,  in  (a)  getting  Him  to 
assert  monotheism,  and  then  (b)  accusing  Him  of  say- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Ixi 


ing  that  He  was  the  Son  of  God.  They  send  one  of 
their  number,  a lawyer,  evidently,  of  great  reputation 
for  skill,  ^^Which,”  said  he,  ^ds  the  great  command- 
ment?” Jesus’  answer  delighted,  almost  won  the  lawyer, 
and,  with  His  other  replies,  so  impressed  His  foes  with 
the  uselessness  of  trying  to  entangle  Him,  that  ^^no  one 
after  that  durst  ask  Him  any  question.”  And  He  put 
to  the  baffled  Pharisees  one  question  concerning  the 
Christ’s  relation  to  David  which  permanently  closed 
their  lips  (Matt,  xxi,  41-46). 

Then  in  the  hearing  of  all  the  people.  He  (see  Matt, 
xxiii)  closed  in  upon  them  and  the  scribes  with  those 
awful  charges  of  hypocrisy,  pride,  selfishness  and  greed, 
those  terrible  denunciations,  those  solemn  warnings  and 
startling  words  of  woe  which  burst  upon  them  like  a 
storm  of  hail.  He,  in  the  severest  terms,  denounced 
their  coveteousness,  hypocrisy,  pride,  pretense  of  prayer, 
neglect  of  the  weightier  matters  of  the  law,  justice, 
mercy,  faith,  their  unfaithfulness  to  their  own  laws, 
and  their  disregard  for  the  rights  and  feelings  of  pa- 
rents, and  of  the  poor.  He  condemned  their  beliefs,  and 
their  perversions,  and  annulling  of  the  Scriptures,  by 
vicious  interpretations,  and  by  traditionalism.  He  ac- 
cused them  of  stilted  pomp  and  hollow  piety,  of  subtle, 
but  deadly,  vices,  of  plundering  the  poor,  of  imposing 
rules  which  they  did  not  themselves  observe,  of  doing 
good  deeds  from  unworthy  motives,  of  having  hearts  in 
which  little  good  was  found,  of  assuming  airs  and  su- 
periority of  their  persons,  by  parade  of  manner  and 
superiority  of  dress,  and  of  liking  to  be  called  of  all 


Ixii 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


inenj^^Kabbi,”  and  to  occupy  chief  seats  in  the  synagogue 
and  at  feasts.  In  one  word  He  denounced  them  as  vile,  and 
their  whole  system  as  destructive  of  all  true  virtue.  In 
the  sweeping  charges  against  them,  and  in  the  tremen- 
dous woes  pronounced  upon  them.  He  seems,  at  first 
sight,  to  have  departed  from  that  spirit  of  meekness,  of 
gentleness  in  judging  others,  and  of  abstinence  from 
the  imputation  of  improper  motives,  which  is  one  of 
the  most  characteristic  and  original  charms  of  His  own 
precepts.  His  death,  it  has  been  said,  may,  in  a certain 
sense,  be  said  to  be  the  price  which  He  paid  for  these 
righteous  words  against  the  spirit,  actings  and  teach- 
ings of  the  Pharisees.  (Smith’s  Bih,  Biot.  Art,  Phar,) 
But  these  words  were  spoken  only  three  days  before 
His  death,  and  after  the  Sanhedrim  had  determined 
that  He  should  die.  And  their  effect  upon  them  was 
not  to  make  them  more  determined  foes,  but  to  drive 
them,  terror-stricken,  out  of  the  field  of  confiict — show- 
ing, thereby,  that  they  felt  the  truth  of  His  allegations. 
Their  hate  had  not  cooled,  but  their  activity  was  para- 
lyzed. They  ceased,  as  a party,  to  take  any  further 
steps  against  Jesus.  Their  name  wholly  disappears 
from  the  record  of  the  events  through  which  the  Sanhe- 
drim accomplished  their  own  malignant  will.  The  formu- 
la,‘^the  Pharisees,  &c.,”  so  constant  before,  wholly  disap- 
pears, and  in  its  place  is,  ^^the  chief  priests  and  elders,” 
‘dhe  chief  priests  and  scribes,  &c.”  These  were  the  perpe- 
trators of  the  tragic  deeds  of  those  eventful  days.  And 
this  fact  warrants  us,  we  think,  to  say  that  Nicodemus 
and  Gamaliel,  perhaps,  took  no  part  in  the  trial  of  Jesus. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Ixiii 


On  that  same  evening,  (Tuesday,  April  4tli),  Jesus 
told  His  disciples  of  His  being  then,  on  that  very  even- 
ing, while  speaking,  betrayed,^ds  betrayed  to  be  crucified.’" 
(Matt,  xxvi,  2).  And  at  that  very  time  the  chief  priests, 
elders  and  scribes  were  in  secret  and  extraordinary  ses- 
sion at  the  palace  of  Caiaphas.  To  all  the  motives 
hitherto  acting  upon  them  were  now  added  the  events 
and  words  of  this  day.  They  were  inspired  by  a firm 
determination  to  kill  Jesus  at  once.  They  dared  not 
take  Him  on  the  feast-day  for  fear  of  an  uproar  of  the 
people.  They  must  seize  Him  by  craft.  How,  they 
knew  not.  Judas’  sudden  appearance  in  their  midst, 
and  proffer  to  betray  Him,  resolved  the  difficulty.  They 
at  once  made  a covenant  with  him.  And  he  began  to 
watch  ^^for  an  opportunity  to  betray  Him  in  the  absence 
of  the  multitude.” 

We  have  already  given  a sketch  of  the  scribes.  The 
elders  were  officers  who  filled  both  a political  and 
religious  position.  The  office  was  in  existence  under 
the  patriarchal  system,  and  during  the  bondage  in 
Egypt.  Under  the  Mosaic  constitution  they  were  the 
representative  senate  of  the  whole  people  (Num.  xi,  16), 
And  afty  Synagogues  were  established,  they  were  their 
rulers.  They  exercised  the  rights  of  sovereignty,  acted 
as  a court  in  capital  cases,  and  were  charged  with  the 
execution  of  the  sentence.  The  people  were  bound  by 
their  acts.  (Josh,  ix,  16;  Hum.  xv,  22,35;  xxiv,  12; 
liCV.  xiv,  14.)  Gradually,  their  authority  extended  to 
all  matters  relating  to  the  public  welfare.  After  the 
powers  which  they  had  originally  exercised,  were  con- 


Ixiv 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ferred  upon  the  Sanhedrim,  they  continued  as  a distinct 
body,  but  always  acted  in  conjunction  with  it,  and  were 
one  of  the  classes  from  which  its  members  were  chosen. 
(Mark  v,  22;  Acts  xviii,  16;  xviii,  8,  17;  Lightfoot’s 
Works.)  They  had  great  influence,  always  took  an  ac- 
tive part  in  the  management  of  public  affairs,  and  were 
deeply  interested  in  all  events  affecting  the  public 
welfare. 

No  such  charges  lie  against  them  in  the  sacred  pages, 
as  against  their  associates.  When  first  mentioned  in 
connection  with  Jesus,  it  is  on  a benevolent  errand. 
(Luke  vii.)  When  next  mentioned,  it  is  as  one  of  the 
parties  which  would  be  involved  in  the  guilt  of  Jesus’  suf- 
ferings and  death  (Matt,  xvi,  21).  No  reason  is  given  for 
their  hostility.  They  appear  no  more  until  the  Tuesday 
before  His  death,  as  part  of  the  deputation  of  the  San- 
hedrim (Matt,  xxi,  23).  And  from  this  day  on  they 
are  constantly  associated  with  the  chief  priests  and 
scribes  in  all  their  murderous  efforts.  (Matt,  xxvi,  3, 
47,  67,  69;  xxvii,  1,  6,  16,  20,  41;  xxviii,  12;  Mark 
xiv,  43,  63;  xv,  1;  Luke  xxiii,  62.) 

But  neither  the  elders  nor  scribes  were  as  bitter  and 
implacable  foes  as  were  “the  chief  priests.”  The  priests, 
as  a class,  seem  to  have  had  no  share  in  the  guilt;  the 
term,  hiereus^  priest,  being  invariably  used  in  the  Gos- 
pels— except  Luke  x,  31 — as  expressive  of  office,  merely 
But  the  term,  archiereus^  translated  sometimes  “high,” 
sometimes  “chief,”  priest,  is  always  (except  in  Matt,  ii, 
4;  xxvi,  61,  68;  Mark  ii,  24;  xiv,  47,  66;  Luke  iii,  2; 
xxii,  60;  John  xviii,  10,  16,  16),  associated  with  the 


THE  HOLY  HEATH. 


Ixv 


hostility  to  Jesus.  The  high  priest  was  the  head  of  the 
hierarchy.  Those  who  had  filled  this  office,  and  the 
heads  of  the  twenty-four  courses  into  which  the  coni' 
mon  priesthood  was  divided,  were  called  ^^chief  priests.” 
The  former  were,  ex-officio^  members  of  the  Sanhedrim ; 
and  the  latter  were  legally  eligible  to  a seat  in  it.  (Wi- 
ner, Art.  High  Priest.,  Carpzov.  Ajpp.  Grit.  pg.  102.) 

The  office  was  of  divine  appointment.  Its  duties,  ex- 
cept the  higher  and  more  ethical  ones  of  acting  as  judges 
in  certain  cases,  and  of  teaching  the  people  the  divine 
statutes  (Deut.  xvii,  8-13;  xx,  1-6;  xxiii,  10;  Lev.  x, 
11,  &c.),  were  confined  to  sacrifice  and  offering.  Every 
detail  of  their  work  was  laid  down;  and  it  was,  through 
all  changes  of  the  national  life,  fixed  and  immovable. 

This  stereotyped  character  was  given  because  of  the 
profoundly  significant  ceremonial  and  typical  import  of 
the  office.  The  priest  was  to  draw  near  to  God  for  the 
people,  and  make,  by  a symbolic  sacrifice,  an  atonement 
for  them,  and  receive  for  them,  blessing  from  God. 
Thus,  too,  did  he  type  the  High  Priest  to  come.  The 
appointment,  purpose  and  work  made  this  order  the 
holiest,  and  the  position  the  noblest,  on  earth.  Its  oc- 
cupants were  to  be  men  of  pure  lives,  conservators  of 
the  great  ideas  of  the  theocracy,  and  the  diffusers  of 
a healthful  and  ennobling  infiuence  on  the  life,  religi- 
ous, social  and  national,  of  which  they  were  a most  im- 
portant element.  At  times  their  lives  and  labors  made 
them  a blessing.  But  usually,  the  reality  was  sadly  far  be- 
low the  ideal.  The  constant  tendency  of  the  order,  from 
the  days  of  Eli,  was  tow^ards  degeneracy.  'Now  and 


Ixvi  THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

then  a noble  one  apj)eared,  and  some  of  them,  as  Jere- 
miah, Zachariah  and  Ezekiel,  entered  deeply  enough  into 
the  divine  thought  to  receive  a call  to  the  higher  office 
of  prophet.  But  for  the  most  part  their  history  is  one 
of  routine  and  of  corruption.  Their  ignorance  and  in- 
difference prevented  them  from  the  exercise  of  the 
teaching  and  judicial  functions,  and  their  lives  exposed 
them  to  the  severest  rebukes.  They  never  protested 
against,  but  often  shared  in,  the  idolatry  of  the  kings 
and  people.  Sometimes  they  allowed  it  even  in  the 
Temple  itself.  (2  Chron.  xvii,  7-9;  xix,  8-10;  Jer.  ii, 
8;  viii,  1,2;  Ez.  xl,  22;  xliv,  12.)  They  ate  unclean 
things,  and  polluted  the  Sabbaths.  They  were  covet- 
eous,  sensual,  servile,  tyrannical,  adulterous  and 
drunkards.  (Js.  xxviii,  7,  8;  Ivi,  10-12.)  These  scan- 
dals called  for  the  severest  denunciations.  And  against 
the  priests  the  prophets  constantly  appeared. 

The  Captivity  effected  a reformation.  But  Malachi’s 
outcry  against  their  wrongs  shows  how  ineffectual  was 
this,  or  any  discipline  to  effect  more  than  a temporary 
one.  And  the  closing  voice  of  the  Hebrew  seers, 
ghows  how  the  order  had  entirely  failed  to  fulfill  its 
mission  of  maintaining  the  religious  life  of  the  nation, 
in  its  divine  and  ennobling  purity  and  vigor. 

Afterwards,  an  improvement  again  began, wdiich,  so  far 
as  the  nobler  spirits  of  the  order,  such  as  Zacharias  (Luke 
i),  were  concerned,  continued  to  the  time  of  Christ. 
These,  apparently,  were  not  unfriendly  to  Him.  Some 
of  them,  it  may  be,  gave  the  facts  that  occurred  in  the 
Temple  at  the  time  of  the  crucifixion  (Matt,  xxvii,  51). 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  Ixvil 

And  of  them  a great  nninber  became,  after  Pentecost, 
obedient  to  the  faith  (Acts  vi,  7). 

Bnt  these  were  poor,  nninflnential  in  the  public  life, 
and  despised  by  the  wealthy,  worldly,  powerful  mem- 
bers of  the  order.  These  latter  are  delineated  by  a 
stroke  in  the  parable  of  “the  Good  Samaritan’’  (Luke  x, 
31).  So  are  the  High  Priests.  In  the  time  of  the  Macca- 
bees, they  became  rather  a civil  magistrate  than  a re- 
ligious officer.  And  in  the  time  of  John  Hyrcanus 
they  subordinated  the  cause  of  religion  to  personal  am- 
bition. In  the  time  of  Josephus  they  were,  so  he  says, 
and  he  knew  them  well,  proud  and  intensely  selfish, 
used  their  office  for  personal  ends,  and  neglected,  or 
perfunctorily  performed,  its  duties.  As  the  Pharisees 
regarded  man  as  made  for  the  Sabbath,  so  the  high 
priests  acted  as  if  both  God  and  men  existed  for  them. 
(Mai.  i,  5-14;  ii,  7-11,  17.)  To  them  Judaism  was  a 
sacerdotal  system.  Man’s  character  was  estimated  by 
the  amount  of  sacrifices  that  he  offered,  and  of  the  money 
he  gave.  Hence  they  exalted  the  ritual  above  the  ethical 
and  practical,  and  while  zealous  for  everything  that  up- 
held, were  fierce  against  everything  that  tended  to  des- 
troy the  system  which  gave  them  infiuence,  wealth,  and 
a high  social  and  political  position. 

They  had  no  living  faith,  and  no  honest  theocratic 
zeal.  They  aimed  only  at  splendor,  ease  and  social  in- 
fiuence. These,  they  saw,  could  be  obtained,  and  their 
ritual  maintained,  under  foreign  rule.  They,  hence, 
were  Sadducees.  (Acts  iv,  1,  6;  v,  17;  Jos.  Ant.  xv, 
9,  1.)  And  being  thoroughly  under  the  teaching 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


and  spirit  of  that  sect,  they  adjusted  themselves  to  the 
dominion  of  Rome  as  easily  as  their  ancestors  had  to 
that  of  the  Persian  and  Greek. 

This  rule  sustained  them,  and  they  sustained  it.  They 
allowed  Herod  and  his  family  to  institute  and  depose 
the  acting  high  priest,  at  will.  And  this  he  did  so  fre- 
quently that  twenty-eight  persons  filled  the  office  in 
less  than  a century.  (Jos.  Ant.  xv,  1;  2,  4-7;  3,  1; 
9,  3;  xvii,  4,  2;  xviii,  5-1;  Shurer,  Die.  archiereus 
im,  hr.  T.  Stut.  u Krit.  1872,  pg.  529,  et.  sq.)  Now 
this  exercise  of  arbitrary  power,  which  regarded  not 
the  legal  or  personal  fitness  of  the  candidate,  but  politi- 
cal expediency,  or  personal  ends,  was  a degradation  of 
the  office,  and  had  a most  depressing  effect  upon  the  oc- 
cupants of  it.  They  could  grow  rich  on  the  illicit  gains. 
They  had  a seat  in  the  Sanhedrim.  This  gave  power 
and  influence.  Hence  the  ofiice  was  courted,  and  became 
the  football  of  ambitious  and  designing  men.  It  be- 
ing the  gift  of  the  foreign  rulers,  they  were  courted. 
Their  influence  was  sought,  and  when  obtained,  held, 
at  the  expense  of  manhood  and  of  every  true  theocratic 
principle. 

These  facts  show  us  the  ground  of  their  hostility. 
They  were  indifferent  to  His  deluding,  the  people — as 
they  thought — by  His  teaching,  healing,  working  mira- 
cles, and  claiming  to  be  the  Messiah.  All  this  touched 
not  their  order,  office  and  infiuence.  Nor — because  they 
hated  them — did  they  care  how  many  and  severe  re- 
bukes He  gave  the  Pharisees.  But  when  He  left  the 
synagogue  and  went  into  the  Temple,  and  assumed  the 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Ixix 


authority  to  cleanse  it,  and  to  teach  and  heal  in  it,  He 
— for  He  belonged  not  to  the  priestly  family — invaded 
their  exclusive  domain.  They  might  overlook  the  bit- 
ter rebuke  of  their  avarice  and  faithlessness  to  God, 
which  accompanied  the  act  of  cleansing.  But  they  could 
not  forgive  the  loss  of  their  great,  if  illicit,  gains,  nor  the 
heavy  blows  to  their  sacerdotalism  given  by  His  life, 
actions, words — such  as,  ‘‘1  will  have  mercy,  and  not 
sacrifice” — under  which  their  system  and  themselves 
would  go  down  in  one  common  ruin. 

This  was  the  very  core  of  their  hate.  The  Pharisees 
were  actuated  by  theocratic  zeal,  they  by  intense  selfish- 
ness. And  this  will  always,  if  needs  be,  and  it  can,  re- 
sort to  extreme  measures,  to  gain  its  end.  To  make 
themselves  secure,  they  sacrificed  Jesus.  Their  hate 
was  too  deadly  to  be  appeased  by  words.  They  could 
not  argue,  but  they  could  strike.  They  did  not  care  to 
strike  until  they  had  Him  in  their  power,  and  then  the 
blow  would  be  final.  There  is  something  startling  in 
the  frequency  (seventy-five  times)  with  which  they  are 
mentioned  in  the  history  of  the  Passion  of  Jesus. 
Implacable  foes  from  the  first  cleansing  of  the  Temple, 
and  the  soul  of  the  conspiracy  against  Him,  they  de- 
termined to  kill  Him  as  soon  as  they  could.  To  them  be- 
longs the  chief  guilt  of  the  arrest,  the  mockery  of  a 
trial,  the  agony,  the  tragic  scenes  of  the  cross.  They 
could  not  touch  Him  in  Galilee.  There  name  is  never 
mentioned  among  the  parties  there  seeking  His  life. 
But  every  time  He  went  into  Jerusalem,  He  went  into 
the  jaws  of  death.  This  fact,  and  their  purpose,  Jesus 


Ixx 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


knew  full  well.  Thrice  He  foretold  His  disciples  that 
He  would  be  killed  by  the  chief  priests  and  scribes. 
And  now  they  are  perfecting  the  arrangements  which 
will  insure  their  success. 

We  have  now  reached  that  point  in  the  history  of  the 
conflict  between  Jesus  and  ^‘the  Jews”  where  His  arrest 
occurred.  This  brief  sketch  will  enable  us  to  enter, 
with  a clearer  intelligence,  upon  the  investigation  of 
the  facts  connected  with  the  trial.  In  its  study  will  be 
found  some  further  remarks  upon  this  hostility,  and  to 
the  history  of  the  trial  we  now  turn. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


71 


Section  II. 

JESUS  ARRESTED. 

Matt,  xxvi,  47-56;  Mark  xiv,  43-52;  Luke  xxii,  47-53;  John 
xviii,  2-12. 

The  contiimous  narrative  of  the  above  passages  is  as 
follows : 

And  he  that  was  called  Jndas,  one  of  the  twelve^ 
which  also  betrayed  Him,  knew  the  place — i.  e,,  Geth- 
semane — for  Jesns  ofttimes  resorted  thither  with  His 
disciples.  Judas  then  having  received  a band  of  men 
and  officers  from  the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees,*  and 
the  scribes  and  elders  of  the  people,  cometh  thither. 

And  as  He  eggeken  was  approaching,  (Mark  xiv,  42, ' 
e.  V.,  at  hand),  Jesus  said  to  His  disciples — the  eleven: 

Rise  up,  let  us  be  going;  lo,  he  is  eggihen^  approach- 
ing, that  doth  betray  Me.  And  immediately,  while  He 
yet  spake,  lo,  Judas  came,  and  with  him  a great  multi- 
tude, with  swords  and  staves,  with  lanterns  and  torches, 
and  weapons.  And  Judas  went  before  them. 

Jesus,  therefore,  knowing  all  things  that  should  come 
upon  Him,  exelthoon^  went  forth — i.  e.,  out  of  the  gar- 
den—2,^^^  said  unto  them. 

Whom  seek  ye? 

They  answered  Him,  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 

Jesus  saith  unto  them,  I am  He. 

And  Judas  also,  which  betrayed  Him,  stood  with 

* This  is  the  last  mention  of  them  in  connection  with  the  trial 
of  Jesus. 


72 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


them.  As  soon  then  as  He  had  said  unto  them,  I am 
He,  they  went  backward,  and  fell  to  the  ground. 

Then  asked  He  then  again.  Whom  seek  ye? 

And  they  said,  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 

Jesus  answered,  I have  told  you  that  I am  He.  If, 
therefore,  ye  seek  Me,  let  these  go  their  way,  that  the 
saying  might  be  fulfilled  which  He  spake.  Of  them 
which  Thou  gayest  me,  I have  lost  none. 

The  betrayal.]  Now  he  that  betrayed  Him,  had 
given — gave — them  a sign,  saying.  Whomever  I shall 
kiss,  that  same  is  He;  take  Him,  hold  Him  fast,  lead 
Him  away  safely.  And  forthwith,  as  soon  as  he  was 
come,  he  goeth  straightway,  he  drew  near  to  Jesus  to 
kiss  Him,  and  said.  Hail,  Rabbi,  and  kissed  Him. 

Jesus’  last  word  to  Judas.]  And  Jesus  said  unto 
him,  etaire^  Comrade,  wherefore  art  thou  come?  Judas, 
betrayest  thou  the  Son  of  Man  with  a kiss? 

Then  came  they,  the  band  chiliarchos^  the  cap- 
tain— i,  ^.,  of  the  Homan  soldiers — and  huperetes^  Tem- 
ple police  officers  of  the  Jews,  and  laid  hands  on  Jesus, 
and  took  Him,  and  bound  Him. 

When  they  which  were  about  Him  saw  what  would 
follow,  they  said  unto  Him,  Lord,  shall  we  smite  with 
the  sword?  And  behold,  one  of  them  which  were  with 
Jesus,  and  stood  by,  Simon  Peter,  having  a sword, 
stretched  out  his  hand  and  drew  his  sword,  and  smote 
a servant  of  the  high  priest,  and  cut  off  his  right  ear. 
The  servant’s  name  was  Malchus. 

And  Jesus  answered  and  said — to  those  holding  Him 
— suffer  ye  thus  far — ^.,  loosen  your  hold  enough  for 
Me  to  touch  the  ear. — And  He  touched  his  ear,  and 
healed  him. 

Then  said  Jesus  unto  Peter,  Put  up  thy  sword  again 
into  his  place,  the  sheath:  for  all  they  that  take  the 
sword  shall  perish  with  the  sword.  Thinkest  thou  that 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


73 


I cannot  now  pray  to  My  Father,  and  He  shall  present- 
ly give  Me  more  than  twelve  legions — 72,000 — of  an- 
gels? But  how  then  shall  the  Scripture  he  fulfilled  that 
thus  it  must  be?  The  cup  which  My  Father  hath  given 
Me,  shall  I not  drink  it? 

In  that  same  hour  Jesus  answered  and  said  unto  the 
multitude,  the  chief  priests  and  strateegous^  captains 
of  the  Temple,  and  the  elders  which  were  come  to  Him, 
Are  ye  come  out  as  against  a thief,  with  swords  and 
staves,  for  to  take  Me?  When  I was,  sat  daily  with  you 
in  the  Temple,  teaching,  ye  stretched  forth  no  hand 
against  Me,  ye  laid  no  hold  on  Me,  ye  took  Me  not; 
but  this  is  your  hour,  and  the  power  of  darkness:  and 
the  Scripture  must  be  fulfilled. 

All  this  was  done  that  the  Scriptures  of  the  prophets 
might  be  fulfilled. 

Then  all  the  disciples  forsook  Him,  and  fled. 

And  then — as  they  were  leading  Jesus  away — there 
followed  Him  a certain  young  man,  having  a linen  gar- 
ment cast  about  his  naked  body:  and  the  young  men 
laid  hold  on  him.  And  he  left  the  linen  garment,  and 
fled  from  them  naked. 

The  Sanhedrim  were  afraid  to  arrest  Jesus  in  public. 
He  was  popular.  The  people  were  inflammable.  Many 
believed  Flim  to  be  the  Messiah.  Had  a hand  been 
laid  on  Him  in  a crowd,  or  in  a public  place  in  open 
day,  an  explosion  of  feeling  would  have  occurred,  which 
would  at  once  have  led  to  a conflict  with  the  all-power- 
ful conqueror.  But  once  in  the  power  of  the  Sanhe- 
drim, by  a legal  arrest,  the  people  would  be  afraid  to 
move  in  His  favor.  The  arrest  must  be  made  stealthily. 
And  while  the  how  of  it  was  still  agitating  the  council, 


74 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Judas’  unexpected  appearance  and  proffer  at  once  solved 
the  difficulty,  as  to  the  way.  His  action,  as  to  the  time 
(Matt,  xxvi,  5),  however,  was  precipitated  by  Jesus’ 
words:  ^^That  thou  doest,  do  quickly”  (John  xiii,  27). 

He  went  at  once  from  the  ^^upper  room”  to  the  chief 
j)riests.  Arrangements  were  speedily  made  for  Jesus’ 
immediate  arrest.  The  warrant  was  at  once  issued  to  a 
captain  of  the  Temple-guards,  or  police.  (John  vii,  32, 
35,  45;  Acts  iv,  1;  v,  26,  27.)  The  arresting  party 
must  be  attended  by  Homan  soldiers,  to  act  as  occasion 
required;  and  especially,  because  the  plans  involved  an 
assemblage  of  Jews  by  night.  This  was  forbidden,  ex- 
cept under  the  surveillance  of  a military  officer.  Ac- 
cordingly, a band — speira^  a term  which,  in  the  N.  T., 
always  signifies  a division  in  the  Roman  army — was  de- 
tailed from  the  German  Legion(Olshausen),  then  occupy- 
ing Fort  Antonia.  They  were  commanded  by  the  tri- 
bune— chiliarchos — himself.  They — or  the  police — 

carried,  besides  their  swords,  lanterns  in  which  oil  was 
burned,  and  long-handled  torches  of  pitch.  Some  of  the 
chief  priests  and  elders  accompanied,  and  a great  crowd 
of  their  servants,  and  of  people,  followed  them.  Guides 
led  the  way. 

They  reached  the  garden — so  well  known  to  Judas, 
because  he  so  often  had  been  there  with  Jesus — about, 
or  soon  after,  1 A.  M.,  Friday,  April  7th,  A.  D.  30. 
The  military  were  posted  outside.  The  Jewish  officers, 
who  alone  could  arrest  a Jewish  offender,  were  about  to 
go  into  the  garden,  followed  by  part  or  all  of  the  crowd. 
But  Jesus,  wlio,  perhaps,  had  seen  the  lights  as  they 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


75 


had  moved  down  the  opposite  slope,  and  who  knew,  cer- 
tainly, all  things  that  should  come  upon  Him,  went  forth 
exelthon — perhaps,  while  the  officers  stopped  at  the 
entrance  to  consult — and,  in  calm  majesty,  met  the  trai- 
tor and  his  band  at  the  gate.  In  the  full  consciousness 
of  the  importance  of  that  moment.  He  asked.  Whom 
seek  ye?  Some  who  did  not  know  Him,  said,  Jesus  of 
Nazareth.  With  the  power  and  repose  of  heaven  He 
replied,  I am  He.  This  mighty  word,  so  unexpected, 
so  full  of  dignity^  and  enforced  by  the  transcendent  ele- 
vation of  His  bearing,  caused  Judas  and  the  crowd  to 
recoil.  Some,  Judas,  among  them,  fell  to  the  ground. 
This  was  no  miracle.  The  power  of  His  presence,  and 
"the  dignity,  the  moral  ascendency,  that  beamed  forth 
from  it,  affected  them,  as  it  did  the  buyers  and  sell- 
ers in  the  Temple,  in  the  profoundest  manner.  (See 
also  Mark  vii,  60;  John  vii,  46.)  Thus  He  showed 
them  that  His  surrender  was  a perfectly  voluntary  act, 
that  He  was  a prisoner,  not  by  the  power  of  man,  but 
by,  and  for  the  will  of,  God.  And  thus,  also.  He  ef- 
fected the  shielding  of  His  followers  from  arrest. 

Then  came  the  kiss,  the  customary  one  of  the  disciple 
to  his  Teacher,  but  now  given  by  the  traitor  as  a sign. 
‘‘Comrade,’’  exclaimed  Jesus,  “betrayest  thou  the  Son 
of  Man  with  a kiss?”  This  was  followed  by  the  imme- 
diate seizing  of  Jesus.  Soon  as  arrested,  the  Roman 
officers  became  responsible  for  His  safe  keeping.  At 
once  the  soldiers  and  Temple-guard  bound  Him.  If 
this  was  done  according  to  the  Roman  usage  (Acts  xxi, 
33),  He  was  chained  by  the  wrists  to  two  soldiers  (Acts 


76 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xii,  6),  or  bound  with  thongs  (Acts  xx,  22-25).  Then 
arose  the  excitement  among  His  followers,  during 
which  Peter  rashly  cut  off  Malchus’  ear,  which  Jesus 
at  once  healed.  Then  He  spake  those  great  truths 
which  rebuked  Peter’s  rashness,  showed  the  infinite 
ease  with  which  He  could  overcome  His  foes,  His  pur- 
pose to  drink  the  proffered  cup,  and  to  fulfill  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  the  baseness  of  the  fact  and  manner  of  His 
arrest.  By  this  time  the  eleven  were  completely  terri- 
fied. Jesus  had  always  been  an  enigma  to  them.  And 
the  most  obscure,  as  the  most  terrible,  fact,  was  that 
He  must  be  rejected  and  be  crucified.  When  He  first 
intimated  it,  Peter  repelled  the  awful  idea.  This  ob- 
scurity was  deepened,  and  this  dread  increased,  by  His  in- 
timations of  sorrow  after  the  resurrection  of  Lazarus, 
and  the  triumphal  entry  into  the  city.  And  no  won- 
der; for  the  grief  of  God  is  too  deep  for  the  thought  of 
man.  Jesus’  great  thought,  life  out  of  death,  lay  out- 
side the  horizon  of  their  thinking.  Now,  His  sudden 
arrest  bewildered  them.  Their  hopes  were  blasted. 
What  the  end  would  be  they  could  not  tell.  Terror- 
stricken,  they  all  forsook  Him,  and  fled. 

As  the  soldiers  were  leading  Jesus  away,  a young 
man,  who  had  been  aroused  out  of  his  sleep  by  the  tu- 
mult, and  had  come  out  in  his  night  dress  to  see  what 
was  going  on,  was  laid  hold  on  by  some  of  “the  young 
men.”  In  his  effort  to  escape  he  was  disrobed,  and  fied 
from  them  naked.  But  the  soldiers  moved  on  with 
their  prisoner.  Alone  and  friendless.  He  was  led  back 
along  that  same  road  which  He  had  passed  a free  man 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


77 


two  hours  before.  He  reached  the  city  before  2 A.  M., 
passed  through  its  silent  streets,  was  taken  directly  to 
the  high  priest’s  house,  and  was  fast  in  the  power  of 
His  foes  while  Jerusalem  was  yet  fast  asleep. 

We  look  back  over  that  Gethsemane  scene.  We 
see,  that  great  as  Jesus  always  was,  never  was  He 
greater,  never  did  He  more  admirably  exhibit  the  finest 
attributes  of  the  grandest  humanity  than  in  this  gar- 
den, on  this  the  night  in  which  He  was  betrayed.  Will 
He,  while  going  through  the  terrible  scene  yet  before 
Him,  will  He,  while  drinking  the  cup,  exhibit  as  ad- 
mirable a character?  We  shall  see. 


JESUS  BEFORE  AEHAS. 

His  First  Examination. 

Matt,  xxvi,  57;  Mark  xiv,  53;  Luke  xxii,  54;  John  xviii,  12-24. 

The  continuous  narrative  of  the  above  passages  is  as 
follows: 

And  they  that  laid  hold  on  Jesus,  led  Him  away  into 
the  high  priest’s  house,  and  led  Him  to  Annas  first,  for 
he  was  father-in-law  to  Oaiaphas,  which  was  the  high 
priest  that  same  year.  Now,  Oaiaphas  was  he  which 
gave  counsel  to  the  J ews,  that  it  was  expedient  that  one 
man  should  die  for  the  people. 

The  high  priest  then  asked  Jesus  of  His  disciples, 
and  of  His  doctrine. 

And  Jesus  answered  him,  I spake  openly  to  the 
world;  I ever  taught  in  the  synagogue,  and  in  the  tern- 

?le,  whither  the  Jews  always  resort;  and  in  secret  have 
said  nothing.  Why  askest  thou  Me?  Ask  them 
which  heard  Me,  what  I have  said  unto  them:  behold, 
they  know  what  I said. 


78 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


And  when  He  had  thus  spoken,  one  of  the  officers 
which  stood  by,  struck  Jesus  with  the  palm  of  his  hand, 
saying,  Answerest  Thou  the  high  priest  so? 

Jesus  answered  him.  If  I have  spoken  evil,  bear  wit- 
ness of  the  evil;  but  if  well,  why  smitest  thou  Me? 

The  opinion  of  the  great  body  of  modern  scholars  is, 
that  the  high  priest’s  house  was  the  official  residence  of 
the  acting  high  priest,  so  of  Caiaphas.  According  to 
oriental  custom,  the  palace  was  occupied  by  all  the 
members  of  the  family,  as  well  as  the  ruling  person. 
And  so  identified  were  Annas  and  Caiaphas  in  public 
opinion,  that  Luke  (iii,  2)  mentions  them  as  exercising 
the  office  in  common,  the  one  as  the  titular  and  de  jure^ 
the  other  as  the  acting  high  priest.  And  it  is  most 
probable,  therefore,  that  Annas  occupied  apartments  in 
the  sacerdotal  palace,  perhaps  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  court.  This  was  the  house  into  which  Jesus  was 
taken,  and  brought  before  Annas — called  in  Jewish 
writings,  Hanan — first. 

He — Josephus  is  our  authority — was,  at  this  time,^ 
the  oldest  ex-high  priest  living,  and  had  passed  his 
seventieth  year.  Though  not  so  noble  looking  as  Caia- 
phas, his  face  showed  great  powers  of  mind  and  great 
decision  of  character.  His  personal  infiuence  would  be 
great  anywhere.  This  added  to  his  official,  and  also  his 
family,  position,  as  the  head  of  the  great  Sadducean, 
and  their  reigning  priestly  family,  the  Boethusin,  made 
him  the  most  influential  man  in  Jerusalem.  Because 
the  least  displeasing  man  to  both  Jews  and  Romans,  he 
had  been  appointed,  A.  D.  7,  high  priest  by  Quirenius, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


79 


imperial  governor  of  Syria.  Some  years  later  he  was 
deposed.  But  his  family  had,  since  that  year,  held  the 
office,  with  only  a break  of  two  years,  and  he  retained 
the  title  and  influence  of  the  office  to  the  day  of  his 
death.  Without  him  nothing  of  moment  was  done  in 
the  affairs  of  the  theocracy.  Four  of  his  sons  became 
high  priests,  and  his  daughter  was  the  wife  of  the  high 
priest  Caiaphas.  He  was  avaricious,  crafty,  cruel.  His 
seizure  of  his  prey  was  like  the  spring  of  a tiger,  and 
he  never  relaxed  his  hold  until  he  had  gained  his  ends. 

He  had  been  sitting  up,  perhaps,  with  others,  and 
awaiting  the  arrival  of  Jesus,  who  now  was  brought 
before  him.  This  was  done,  perhaps,  to  gratify  his  de- 
sire to  see  the  Man  towards  whom  he  felt  so  deadly  a 
hate;  and  to  pay  court,  also,  to  one  wffiose  influence 
would  have  great  weight  with  the  council  and  populace ; 
and,  also  farther,  perhaps,  by  agreement  between  him 
and  Caiaphas,  to  allow  him  opportunity  to  talk  with  Jesus 
while  the  Sanhedrim  was  assembling,  and  thus  get  some- 
thing which  could  be  used  as  testimony  against  Him. 

Whatever  the  motive,  before  Him  Jesus  was  placed. 
To  throw  Him  off  His  guard,  perhaps.  He  was  un- 
bound. The  interview  was  not  private,  for  officers, 
at  least,  were  present.  And  if  John  was  not  in  the 
room,  he  and  Peter  were  in  the  outer  court  of  the  pal- 
ace. Annas  asked  Jesus  of  His  disciples  and  teaching. 
This  could  scarcely  be  called  a preliminary  examina- 
tion. No  legal  forms  were  observed.  No  witnesses 
were  produced.  It  seems  an  informal  interview.  To 
Annas’  insidious  questions,  put  to  overawe,  and  to  in- 


80 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


volve  Jesus,  through  their  answer  in  the  charge  of 
secret  apostacy,  Jesus  gave  answers  unsuitable  to  a 
judicial  investigation,  but  most  appropriate  to  the  in- 
quisitorial and  impertinent  questions  of  a heresy-hunt- 
ing priest.  He  was,  He  said,  free  from  any  secret 
teaching  and  association.  He  was  no  secret  plotter,  or 
apostate.  He  had  frankly  spoken  in  public,  and  to  the 
world.  ‘‘I  ever  taught  in  the  Synagogue,  and  in  the 
Temple,  whither  the  Jews  always  resort.  Why  askest 
thou  Me?  ask  them  which  heard  Me,  what  I have  said 
unto  them:  behold,  outo%  these’’ — pointing,  perhaps,  to 
those  standing  by — “know  what  I said,” — the  implica. 
tion  being  that  they  could  tell,  if  they  would. 

This  unexpected  answer  silenced,  baffled,  irritated 
Annas,  as  truth,  calmly  spoken,  always  will  do  to  those 
who  are  hurt  by  it.  His  face  betrayed  his  feelings: 
this  is  defeat,  and  so  a fresh  offense.  A captain  of  the 
Temple,  standing  by,  interpreted  the  look.  With  his 
baton,  or  with  his  hand — rapisma^  may  signify  either — 
he  struck  Jesus,  saying,  “Answerest  Thou  the  high 
priest  so?”  So  Zedekiah  smote  Micaiah.  So  Pashnr 
smote  Jeremiah.  So  one,  by  the  order  of  the  high 
priest,  Ananias,  smote  Paul.  And  The  Spirit  thought 
it  not  beneath  His  dignity  to  announce  centuries  be- 
fore, “So  will  they  do  to  the  Teacher  and  Judge  of 
Israel.”  (1  Kings  xxii,  24;  Jer.  xx,  2;  Acts  xxiii,  2; 
Is.  1,  6,  7;  liii,  7;  Mi.  iv,  14.  See,  also,  in  these  proph- 
ecies the  contrast  between  Jesus’  state  of  mind  and 
theirs  who  gave  the  blows.) 

Paul,  similarly  insulted,  flamed  into  sudden  anger, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


81 


and  scathed  the  ruffian  hidden  under  the  priestly  robes, 
and  his  abettor.  But  this  unrebuked  forerunner  of  the 
cruel  insults  and  indignities  of  that  *day  disturbed  not 
Jesus’  repose  of  spirit,  and  gave  Annas  no  point  against 
Him.  It  was  the  only  indignity  of  that  day  that  called 
forth  a word  from  His  lips.  But  since  it  was  necessary 
for  Him,  once  for  all,  to  assert  His  own  absolute  inno- 
cence, He,  with  becoming  dignity  and  firmness,  re- 
proved the  insult,  which,  with  such  noble  meekness  he 
bore:  ^‘If  I have  spoken  evil,  bear  witness  of  that  evil: 
but  if  well,  why  smitest  thou  Me?” 

Section  III. 

Simultaneously  with  this  scene  in  the  palace,  one  ex- 
ceedingly sad  was  occurring  in  the  open  court.  This 
was, 

PETER’S  DEHIALS  OF  JESUS. 

At  the  supper  Jesus  had  foretold  Peter  of  his  im- 
pending danger  and  fall.  The  narrative,  found  only  in 
John,  is  as  follows  (xiii,  36-38): 

Simon  Peter  said  unto  Him,  Lord,  whither  goest  Thou? 

Jesus  answered  him,  Whither  I go,  thou  canst  not 
follow  me  now;  but  thou  shalt  follow  me  afterward. 

Peter  said  unto  Him,  Lord,  why  cannot  I follow  Thee 
now?  I will  lay  down  my  life  for  Thy  sake. 

Jesus  answered  him.  Wilt  thou  lay  down  thy  life  for 
My  sake?  Verily,  verily,  I say  unto  thee,  The  cock 
shall  not  crow  till  thou  hast  denied  me  thrice. 

On  the  way  to  the  Garden,  Jesus  repeats  His  warn- 
ing (Matt,  xxvi,  31-36;  Mark  xiv,  27-31;  Luke  xxii, 
31-38): 


82 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


And  JesHS  saitli  nnto  them,  All  ye  shall  be  ofiended 
because  of  me  this  night:  for  it  is  written,  I will  smite 
the  Shepherd,  and  the  sheep  of  the  flock  shall  be  scat- 
tered abroad.  Bnt  after  I am  risen  again,  I will  go  be- 
fore yon  into  Galilee. 

Peter  answered  and  said  unto  Him,  Though  all  men 
sliall  be  offended  because  of  Thee,  yet  will  I never  be 
offende  d. 

And  the  Lord  said,  Simon,  Simon,  behold,  Satan  hath 
desired  to  have  you,  that  he  may  sift  you  as  wheat:  but 
I have  prayed  for  thee,  that  thy  faith  fail  not:  and 
when  thou  art  converted,  strengthen  thy  brethren. 

And  he  said  unto  Him,  Lord,  I am  ready  to  go  with 
Thee,  both  into  prison,  and  to  death. 

And  Jesus  said  unto  him,  Verily  I say  unto  thee, 
Peter,  that  this  day,  even  in  this  night,  before  the  cock 
crow  twice,  thou  shalt  deny  me  thrice. 

But  Peter  said  unto  Him,  spake  the  more  vehement- 
ly, If  I should  die  with  Thee,  yet  will  I not  deny  Thee 
in  any  wise. 

All  this  was  spoken  before  midnight,  and  the  three 
denials  were  all  made  before  5 A.  M.  of  the  next  morn- 
ing. The  narratives  of  these,  found  in  Matt,  xxvi,  58, 
69-75;  Mark  xiv,  54,  66-72;  Luke  xxii,  54-62;  John 
xviii,  15-18,  25-27, is  as  follows: 

And  Simon  Peter  followed  Jesus — i,  e.^  from  the 
Garden — afar  oft,  even  unto  the  palace  of  the  high 
priest,  and  so  did  another  disciple.  That  disciple  was 
Imown  unto  the  high  priest,  and  went  in  with  J esus 
into  the  palace  of  the  high  priest.  But  Peter  stood  at 
the  door  without.  Then  went  out  that  other  disciple 
which  was  known  to  the  high  priest,  and  spake  unto 
her  that  kept  the  door,  and  brought  in  Peter.  And  he 
went  in  to  see  the  end.  And  when  they — i.  6.,  doulei^ 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


83 


the  private  servants  and  huperetai^  Temple  offioers — 
had  kindled  a fire  of  coals  in  the  midst  of  the  hall,  aulee 
— L e,^  open  court — (for  it  was  cold),  and  were  set  down 
together,  and  warmed  themselves,  Peter  stood,  and  then 
sat  down  with,  and  among,  them,  and  warmed  himself. 

And  as  Peter  sat  without  in  the  palace — i,  e.^  in  the 
open  courts  which  was  lower  {Marks  ‘‘ieneaW^^  than  the 
palace — there  cometh  a certain  maid,  one  of  the  maids 
of  the  high  priest,  the  damsel  that  kept  the  door.  And 
when  she  saw  Peter  as  he  sat  by  the  fire  warming  him- 
self, she  earnestly  looked  upon  him  and  said.  This  man 
was  also  with  Him.  Then  saith  she  unto  Peter,  And 
thou  also  wast  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  of  Galilee.  Art 
not  thou  also  one  of  this  Man’s  disciples? 

But  he  denied  Him,  denied  before  them  all,  saying, 
Woman,  T am  not,  I know  not,  neither  understand  I, 
what  thou  sayest.  I know  Him  not. 

And  he  went  out  into  the  porch,  pulona — i,  ^.,  the 
gateway — and  a cock  crew. 

PETEE’S  SECOND  DENIAL. 

And  after  he  was  gone  out  into  the  porch,  pulona^ 
gateway^  another  maid  saw  him,  and  began  to  say  unto 
them  that  stood  by  there,  This  is  one  of  them.  This 
fellow  was  also  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 

Then  Peter  returned  to  the  open  courts  and  stood, 
and  warmed  himself.  They— servants  and  officers 
of  the  Temple  (John  xviii,  18,  25) — said,  therefore,  un- 
to him.  Art  not  thou  also  one  of  His  disciples?  And 
after  a little  while  another  saw  him,  and  said.  Thou  art 
also  of  them.  • Art  not  thou  also  one  of  His  disciples? 

And  Peter  again  denied  it  with  an  oath,  and  said, 
Man,  I am  not,  I do  not  know  the  Man. 

PETER’S  THIRD  DENIAL. 

And  after  a little  while,  about  the  space  of  one  hour 


84 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


after  the  second  denial^  another,  confidently  affirmed, 
saying,  Of  a truth  this  fellow  also  was  with  Him ; for 
he  is  a Galilean.  They  that  stood  by  came  unto  Peter, 
and  said  unto  him  again,  Surely  thou  also  art  one  ot 
them:  for  thy  speech  agreeth  thereto,  and  bewrayeth 
thee.  One  of  the  servants  of  the  high  priest,  being 
his  kinsman  whose  ear  Peter  cut  off,  saith.  Did  not  I 
see  thee  in  the  garden  with  Him? 

Peter  then  denied  again.  Then  began  he  to  curse 
and  to  swear,  saying,  Man,  I know  not  what  thou  sayest. 
I know  not  this  Man  of  whom  ye  speak. 

And  immediately,  while  he  yet  spake,  the  cock  crew 
the  second  time. 

Just  then  Jesus  was  being  led  forth  from  Annas  to 
Caiaphas^  and  heard  Peter^s  denial.  And  the  Lord 
turned  and  looked  upon  Peter.  And  Peter  remem- 
bered, called  to  mind  the  word  of  the  Lord  which  He 
had  said  unto  him.  Before  the  cock  crow  twice  thou 
shalt  deny  Me  thrice.  And  he  went  out.  And  when 
he  thought  thereon,  he  wept,  and  wept  bitterly. 

Peter’s  first  and  second  denials  were  given  while 
Jesus  was  before  Annas;  and  the  third  one  just  before, 
or  as  Jesus  was  being  led  forth  from  the  rooms  ot 
Annas  across  the  open  court,  on  His  way  to  Caiaphas. 
All  the  denials  were  made  in  the  open  paved  court, 
and  the  second  provocation  was  given  while  He  was  in 
the  passage  leading  to  the  gate  opening  into  the  street. 

In  order  to  understand  these  positions,  it  is  necessary 
to  remember  that  the  sacerdotal  palace,  like  all  stately 
Jewish  houses  of  that  period,  was  quadrangular,  en- 
closing a square,  called  in  the  Gospels,  aulee.^  and  trans. 
lated  in  the  E.  V.,  palace  (in  Matt,  xxvi,  3,  58, 69 ; Mark 


TJiE  HOLY  DEATH. 


85 

xiv,  54,  66;  John  xviii,  16)  and  hall  (in  Mark  xv,  16; 
Luke  xxii,  55).  This  area,  open  to  the  sky,  was  some-' 
times  paved  with  stones,  sometimes  covered  with  a 
lawn,  and  planted  with  trees.  The  front  of  the  build- 
ing faced  this  court.  The  house  had  a corridor  all 
around,  from  which  were  doors  leading  into  the  differ- 
ent apartments,  all  of  which  opened  into  this  court. 
The  entrance  from  the  street  was  through  an  arched 
passage,  called,  in  Mark  (xiv,  66)  proaulion^  and  in 
Matthew  (xxvi,  71),  pulona.  Both  are  translated  in 
our  version  by  the  word  ^^porch.”  The  door,  or  gate, 
opening  into  this  passage  was  at  the  street.  Visitors 
and  servants  alike  passed  through  this  gateway,  but 
while  the  former  passed  on  into  the  house,  the  latter 
waited  in  the  open  court. 

All  the  narratives  agree  that  Peter’s  first  denial  took 
place  in  this  open  court.  And  John,  who  was  an  eye- 
witness, states  that  the  second  and  third  denials  occurred 
in  the  same  place,  and  before  or  while  Jesus  was  led  to 
Caiaphas.  As  to  the  locality  of  these  scenes,  Luke  is 
indefinite,  Matthew  and  Mark  say,  the  gateway,  leading 
into  the  court.  It  seems  to  me  that  a maid  accused 
him  in  the  gateway,  and  Peter,  before  his  denial,  re- 
turned to  the  court,  as  John  says.  Up  to  v.  27  (John 
xviii),  all  had  occurred  in  the  court  and  palace.  And 
the  close  connection  between  v.  18  and  the  first  words 
of  V.  25,  shows  that  the  second  and  third  denials  oc- 
curred before  Jesus  was  led  to  the  Council. 

When  He  was  arrested,  all  His  disciples  forsook  Him 
and  fied.  Two  of  them,  however,  Peter  and  John,  the 


86 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


^^anotlier  disciple,’’  recovered  courage  to  follow  Jesus 
•afar  off  to  the  palace  of  the  high  priest.  John,  who 
was  known  to  the  high  priest,  went  in  with  Jesus  into 
the  open  court.  But  Peter,  who  may  have  lagged  be- 
hind, found  the  door  opening  into  the  court  closed.  He 
sent  in  word  to  John,  who  came  out,  and  spake  to  the 
portress.  She — the  Jews  generally  employed  female 
door-keepers  (2  Sam.  iv,  6;  Act»  xii,  13;  Josephus’ 
Ant.  vii,  2,  1) — opened  the  door,  and  Peter  went  into 
the  court,  and  seated  himself  by  a fire  around  which 
soldiers,  servants,  and  Temple  police  had  gathered.  He 
wished  to  warm  himself,  and  to  see  the  end. 

He  thought  himself  unknown.  But  he  had  hardly 
taken  his  seat  when  the  sudden  and  startling  question 
of  the  portress,  ‘^Art  not  thou  also  one  of  this  Man’s 
disciples,”  and  her  confident  accusation,  ^^Thou  wast 
also  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth,”  told  him  that  he  was  sus- 
pected. He  sought  safety  in  a prompt  and  determined 
denial.  Before  all  he  said,  am  not.” 

Conscience-smitten,  afraid  of  himself,  and  perceiving 
that  he  still  was  regarded  with  distrust,  he  went  from 
the  court  into  the  passage-way  connecting  the  court  with 
the  street — perhaps  to  be  alone,  perhaps  to  go  out  and  flee. 
Just  then  he  heard  the  crowing  of  a cock. 

But,  in  the  midst  of  the  petty  persecution  with  which 
he  was  assailed,  this  warning  was  unheeded,  or  forgot- 
ten. And  while  he  was  yet  in  the  passage-way  another 
maid-servant — to  whom,  perhaps,  he  had  been  pointed 
out  by  the  portress  as  one  who  was,  she  believed,  of 
Jesus’  company — began  to  say  to  them  that  stood  by. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


87 


‘‘This  is  one  of  them,”  “This  fellow  was  with  Jesus  of 
Nazareth.”  To  be  thus  spoken  of  and  pointed  ont  was 
tortnre  to  him.  He  could  not  escape.  He  determined, 
with  affected  boldness,  to  brave  it  out.  He  returned  to 
the  fire  in  the  open  court,  and  stood  and  warmed  him- 
self. He  hoped,  perhaps,  that  he  would  be  lost  sight 
of  in  the  crowd.  But  watchful  eyes  were  on  him.  An- 
other said,  “Thou  art  also  of  them.”  And  the  servants 
and  officers  forced  him,  by  their  direct  question,  “Art 
not  thou  also  one  of  His  disciples?”  to  speak  out. 
Seriously  alarmed,  he  gave  way  the  second  time.  He 
denied,  with  an  oath,  that  he  was  His  disciple,  or  that 
he  even  knew  Jesus. 

This  denial  silenced  the  women,  finally,  and  the 
crowd,  for  a time.  And  had  Peter  kept  silent,  he 
might  have  been  left  alone.  Jesus’  trial  before  Annas 
was  in  progress.  And  Peter,  perhaps,  to  free  himself 
from  all  suspicion,  joins  in  the  conversation  of  the 
crowd.  A fatal  mistake,  this,  as  a method  of  conceal- 
ment. It  was  the  means  of  his  detection.  His  pro- 
vincial accent  and  rustic  manner  of  speech  showed 
him  to  be  a Galilean.  Then  one  of  this  Man’s  disci- 
ples he  must  be.  During  the  hour  since  his  last  deni- 
al, this  conviction  had  been  growing  in  the  minds  of 
those  present,  and  they  at  last  spoke  out  confidently- 
One  of  them  said,  “Surely  this  fellow  was  with  Him : 
for  he  is  a Galilean.”  Then  a chorus  of  voices  stunned 
his  ears  with  the  direct  accusation,  “Surely  thou  art 
one  of  them,  for  thy  speech  bewrayeth  thee”  This 
was  confusing  enough.  And  just  then  he  received  a 


88 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


thrust  which  completely  took  away  all  courage  and 
self-possession.  A kinsman  of  Malchus  confronted 
him  with  the  decisive  question,  ‘^Did  1 not  see  thee  in 
the  garden  with  Him?”  Instantly  Peter  saAv  that  he 
was  known,  that  he  w^as  liable  to  arrest  and  imprison- 
ment, and  might  be  put  to  death  for  his  assault  upon 
Malchus.  Personal  safety  was  the  first  consideration. 
In  his  excessive  terror  all  faith  in  both  the  cause  and 
Person  of  Jesus  disappeared.  Only  by  asseverated  de- 
nials could  he  escape.  With  the  utmost  vehemence, 
with  oaths  and  curses,  he  declared,  ^^I  know  not  wdiat 
thou  sayest:  I know  not  this  Man  of  wdiom  you  speak.” 
And  immediately,  wdiile  the  words  were  still  on  his 
lips,  there  came,  loud  and  clear  to  his  ear,  the  crowing 
of  a cock,  the  second  time.  It  w'as  nature’s  announce- 
ment that  soon  the  first  faint  streaks  of  light  w^ould 
touch  the  mountain-tops.  But  it  had  also  a deeper^ 
louder  voice  for  Peter’s  conscience — a voice  now  heard 
and  heeded.  Just  then  attention  was  turned  from  him 
to  the  procession  leaving  the  palace,  and  moving  across 
the  court.  In  it  was  Jesus,  bound,  and  guarded  by  sol- 
diers, on  His  way  to  the  council.  He,  through  the 
open  door,  had  heard  Peter’s  three  denials  and  oaths. 
And  as  He  was  now  passing  by.  He  turned  and  looked 
upon  him.  That  look  of  tender  rebuke  and  forgiving 
love  melted  his  heart,  and  aroused  his  nobler  nature 
into  action.  It  recalled  Jesus’  word,  ‘‘Satan  hath  de- 
sired to  have  thee  that  he  may  sift  thee  as  wheat;’'  Je- 
sus’ warning,  “Before  the  cock  croAv  twice  thou  shalt 
deney  Me  thrice;”  Jesus’  tender  assurance,  “I  hav 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


89 


prayed  for  tliee,  that  thy  faith  fail  not;”  and  his  own 
asseveration,  ^‘Thongh  all  deny  Thee,  yet  will  not  I.” 
He  thought  thereon.  His  conscience  was  aroused,  and 
his  heart  was  subdued.  He  burst  into  tears.'  He  hur- 
ried away  from  the  scene  of  his  sin  to  some  spot  where 
he  could  be  alone  with  God.  There  he  wept  bitter 
tears  of  godly  penitence.  There  he  confessed  his  sin. 
There  was  he  forgiven. 

Meanwhile,  the  trial  of  Jesus  before  the  council  was 
going  on,  and  to  that  we  turn. 

Section  IY. 

JESUS’  SECOHD  EZAMIHATIOH. 

His  First  Trial  Before  the  Sanhedrim. 

Matt,  xxvi,  57,  59-69;  Mark  xiv,  53,  55-65;  Luke  xxii,  63-65; 

John  xviii,  24. 

Jesus  sent  a prisoner  to  the  council.]  Annas,  there- 
fore, sent — this  is  the  preferable  reading — Him  bound, 
to  Caiaphas.  And  they  led  Him  away  to  Caiaphas, 
the  high  priest,  where,  with  him,  were  assembled  all  the 
chief  priests,  and  the  elders,  and  the  scribes. 

Jesus  put  on  trial.]  And  the  chief  priests  and  elders, 
and  all  the  council,  sought  for  false  witness  against 
Jesus,  to  put  Him  to  death;  but  found  none.  Yea, 
though  many  false  witnesses  came,  and  bare  false  wit- 
ness against  Him,  yet  found  they  none.  Their  witness 
agreed  not  together. 

The  testimony.]  At  the  last  there  arose  certain  two 
false  witnesses,  and  bare  false  witness  against  Him. 
And  (they)  said,  {one  of  them  f)  We  heard  this  Man  say, 
I am  able  to  destroy  the  Temple  of  God,  and  to  build 
it  in  three  days;  {the  other?')  I will  destroy  this  Temple 
made  with  hands,  and  within  three  days  will  build  an- 


90 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


other  made  witliout  hands.  But  neither  so  did  their 
witness  agree  together. 

Caiaphas’  question.]  And  the  high  priest  arose, 
and  stood  up  in  the  midst,  and  asked  Jesus,  saying 
unto  Him,  Answerest  Thou  nothino;?  What  is  it  which 
these  witness  against  Thee? 

But  Jesus  held  His  peace,  and  answered  nothing. 

Jesus  put  under  the  adjuration.]  Again,  the  high 
priest  asked  Him,  and  said  unto  Him,  I adjure  Thee  by 
the  living  God,  that  Thou  tell  us,  whether  Thou  be, 
Art  Thou,  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Blessed,  the  Son 
of  God? 

Jesus’  testimony  in  His  own  behalf.]  And  Jesus 
said  unto  him,  Thou  hast  said,  I Am.  hi evertheless,  I 
say  unto  you,  Hereafter,  ye  shall  see  the  Son  of  Man 
sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  the  power  of  God,  and  com- 
ing in  the  clouds  of  heaven. 

Caiaphas’  official  question  to  the  council.]  Then  the 
high  priest  rent  his  clothes,  saying — and  saith — He 
hath  spoken  blasphemy.  What  any  further  need  have 
we  of  witnesses?  Behold,  now  ye  have  heard  His  b'as- 
phemy.  What  think  ye? 

The  decision.]  And  they  all  condemned  Him  to  be, 
and  answered  and  said.  He  is,  guilty  of  death. 

Jesus  suffers  great  indignities.]  And  the  men  that 
held  Jesus  mocked  Him,  and  smote  Him,  and  some  be- 
gan to  spit  on  Him,  they  did  spit  in  His  face,  and  to 
cover  His  face.  And  when  they  had  blindfolded  Him, 
they  began  to  buffet,  they  buffeted  Him — i.  ^.,  strveh 
Him  071  the  face  with  the  fist, — And  others  smote  Him 
with  the  palms  of  their  hands,  and  they — i,  e,^  both  classes 
of  strikers — asked  Him,  saying,  Prophecy  unto  us,  Thou 
Christ,  who  is  he  that  smote  Thee?  And  many  other 
things  blasphemously  spake  they  against  Him.  And  the 
servants  did  strike  Him  with  the  palms  of  their  hands. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


la 


I?  the  examination  before  Annas  be  regarded  as  a 
trial,  then  Jesns  had  three  successive  trials  before  the 
Jewish  rulers  on  that  day.  The  first,  before  Annas, 
(John  xviii,  13,  19-24),  was  preliminary,  and  inquisito- 
rial. The  second,  before  Caiaphas  and  the  Sanhedrim, 
(Matt,  xxvi,  69-68;  Mark  xiv,  63-65),  svas  an  informal, 
but  the  potential,  one.  The  third,  before  the  Sanhedrim, 
(Luke  xxii,  66-71;  Matt,  xxvii,  1,  2;  Mark  xv,  1),  was 
the  actual,  formal,  and  only  legal  one,  even  in  sem- 
blance. In  the  second,  the  real  determination  was 
openly  avowed;  in  the  third,  the  final  ratification  was 
given.  It  will  be  well  for  the  reader  to  compare  these 
trials  with  His  trial  before  the  Sanhedrim  during  the 
first  year  of  His  ministry,  an  account  of  which  is  found 
in  John,  and  of  which  notice  was  taken  in  the  Prelim- 
inary Study  (see  pgs.  xiv-xvi). 

Jesus,  while  before  Annas,  was  unbound.  But  to 
signify  to  the  council  that  the  purpose  already  agreed 
upon  should  be  carried  out,  Annas  ordered  the  Temple- 
guards  to  put  cords  or  chains  around  Jesus  wrists,  and, 
perhaps,  also,  on  His  ankles.  Annas,  ajpesteilen 
therefore  sent  Jesus,  bound,  to  Caiaphas.  This  Avas 
about  3 A.  M.  The  police  led  Jesus’  out  of  the  palace, 
and  gave  Him  into  the  charge  of  the  Roman  soldiers, 
who  had  been  His  guard  since  His  arrest.  They  w^ere 
to  conduct  Him  from  the  high  priest’s  house,  wdiich 
stood  on  Mount  Zion,  on  the  northern  slope  of  the  up- 

[*  The  oun  is  attested  hy  B.  G.  C.  L.  X.  D.,  and  is  received  by 
Lach,  Tisch,  Lange,  Alford,  Godet.  The  pluperfect  rendering 
'‘had  sent”  of  the  E.  Y.  is  ungrammatical.  Lange,  Alf.  Godet.] 


92 


TTTE  HOLY  T^EATTI. 


per  city,  to  the  council  chamber,  which  Avas  connected 
Avith  the  Temple  on  Mount  Moriah.  Across  the  court 
the  sad  procession  moved — Jesus,  as  He  passed,  giving^ 
to  Peter  that  never  to  be  forgotten  look — out  through 
the  arched  gateway  into,  and  through,  the  silent  streets, 
until  it  reached  the  ravine  separating  the  two  moun- 
tains. Having  crossed  the  massive  stone  bridge  which 
spanned  the  valley  of  Tyrophseon,  the  procession  was 
on  the  Temple-mountain.  Soon  the  council-chamber^ 
Lisheat  Haggazith,  ‘The  chamber  of  the  squares,”  was 
reached.  This  spacious,  and  not  specially  attractive, 
room  was  crescent  shaped.  It  Avas  built  of  the  purest 
AAdiite  marble.  The  floor  was  paved  with  the  flnest 
mosaic.  It  was  lighted  from  the  roof.  Its  front  was 
graced  with  a colonade  of  Corinthian  pillars.  It  was 
connected  with  the  Temple,  and  was  entered  through  a 
vestibule  and  spacious  hall,  whose  chief  door,  opening 
into  the  Temple  court,  was  both  massive  in  size  and 
striking  in  appearance.  In  this  chamber  only — so  says 
the  Talmud — a full  session  of  the  Sanhedrim  must,  and 
could  be,  legally,  assembled  for  a criminal  trial.  Here 
only,  the  sentence  of  death  could  be  pronounced.  And 
if  Jesus  had  not  known  it  before.  His  being  led  into 
this  room,  would  tell  Him  what  the  end  of  His  trial 
would  be.  Cushioned  divans  ran  in  a semi-circle 
around  the  room.  On  them  the  members  sat — the 
doors  closed  and  guarded — in  their  official  robes,  legs 
crossed,  head  turbaned,  feet  bare.  All  faced  the  Presi- 
dent— who  sat  on  a divan  placed  on  a raised  platform 
on  one  side  of  the  room. — and  Avere  under  his  eye. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Tlie  President  and  Vice  President  were  chosen  by 
the  members.  Gamaliel,  Panhs  teacher,  filled,  at  this 
time,  the  chair,  and  the  Vice  President  was  his  son. 
(Lightfoot’s  Works,  xi,  313.)  But  the  High  Priest, 
because  God’s  officer,  was  higher  than  the  President, 
(Acts  xxiii,  4),  and  presided  at  this  trial. 

This  was  Joseph  Caiaphas,  Annas’  son-in-law,  and 
high  priest  that  year.  This  man,  with  whose  name  in- 
famy is  linked,  was  descended,  through  the  Asmonean 
line,  from  Aaron.  His  tall,  well-proportioned  frame, 
his  vigorous  constitution,  his  clear,  keen  eye  which  read 
one  through,  his  round  full  face,  and  long-fiowing  beard, 
all  united  in  giving  him  a fine  personal  appearance. 
His  manner  was  easy,  and  his  voice  clear,  strong  and 
melodious.  When  he  was  about  30  years  old  he  was, 
A.  D.  17,  made  high  priest  by  the  procurator,  Valerius 
Gratus — ^whether  by  Roman  or  Jewish  influence  does 
not  appear.  And  he  held  the  office  until  dispossessed 
by  Vitellius,  A.  D.  37.  The  Gospels  paint  his  charac- 
ter in  his  deeds.  (See  Luke  iii,  2;  John  xi,  49;  xviii, 
13,  14,  24,  28;  Matt,  xxvi,  3,  57;  Acts  iv,  6.  See,  also, 
Josephus.)  He  was  a born  leader  of  men.  His  intel- 
lect was  strong,  but  so  were  his  passions  and  prejudices. 
He  was  fertile  in  expedients,  not  to  do  good,  but  to 
promote  personal  and  family  advancement.  He  dese- 
crated his  high  office,  to  party  purposes,  and  acted  on 
no  higher  principle  than  the  interests  of  his  order,  and 
the  increase  of  his  power.  He  was  the  impersonation  of 
all  that  was  noxious  and  base  in  the  high  priesthood 
•of  that  day.  His  office,  aided  by  his  energy  and  tact. 


04 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


:;ave  liiin  great  infliierice  with  the  people,  and  no  little 
with  Pilate,  with  whom  he  was  personally  acquainted. 
Ilis  hostility  to  Jesus  was  relentless.  At  a called 
meeting  of  the  council,  to  see  how  to  stop  the  increas- 
ing influence  of  Jesus,  immensely  strengthened  by  the 
resurrection  of  Lazarus,  he  gave  direction.  Something 
desperate  must  be  done.  Others,  hesitating  between 
conscience  and  interest,  were  irresolute.  He  sprang  to 
his  feet,  boldly  denied  the  right  of  conscience,  put  the 
claims  of  themselves,  under  the  guise  of  duty  to  the 
nation,  in  the  front  rank,  and  announced  that  it  was 
expedient  that  Jesus  should  die  to  save  the  nation. 
And  his  clear  mind  and  determined  purpose  brought 
the  council  at  once  to  his  views.  He  was  the  only  rep- 
resentative of  Judaism  recognized  by  the  Roman  au- 
thorities. He  alone  could  hold  official  relations  with 
Pilate;  and  to  him,  rather  than  to  the  council,  did 
Annas  send  Jesus  as  a prisoner. 

Clad  in  his  official  robes,  he  now  sat  in  the  Presi- 
dent’s chair.  The  turban  of  blue,  inwrought  with  gold, 
was  on  his  head.  The  breast-plate,  glittering  with  twelve 
juecious  stones,  emblems  of  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel, 
was  on  his  breast.  The  robe  of  blue,  whose  fringe  was 
composed  of  alternate  golden  bells  and  pomegranites, 
.aid  whose  folds  were  gathered  around  his  waist  by  a 
girdle  of  purple  and  gold,  enveloped  his  person.  His 
appearance  was  imposing.  And  his  ‘^garments  of  glory 
and  beauty”  spoke,  emblematically,  of  justice,  truth, 
mercy  and  holiness.  Alas!  that  under  them  should 
have  beaten  such  a malignant  heart! 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


95 


While  the  preliminary  examination  had  been  going 
on,  summons  had  been  sent  out  to  all  the  members  to 
repair  at  once  to  the  council  chamber.  When  Jesus 
was  brought  in,  a full  body  met  His  eye.  Mark  says 
that  all  the  chief  priests,  and  elders,  and  scribes — i,  ^., 
all  who  were  members  of  the  council — were  present. 

This  council,  called  the  Sanhedrim,  may  Jiave  been 
the  successor  of  the  tribunal  mentioned  in  2 Ohron.  xix, 
8,  and  of  the  Senate,  gerousia^  mentioned  in  1 Macc. 
xii,  6;  2 Macc.  i,  10;  iv,  44;  but  of  its  distinct  exis- 
tence we  find  no  earlier  trace  than  the  time  of  Antipa- 
ter and  Herod.  (Jos.  Ant.  xiv,  9-4.)  Its  71  members, 
including  the  President  (Tract.  Sanhed.^  1-6),  were  from 
the  three  classes  of:  (a)  archiereis.^  chief  priests,  a term 
which  included  the  heads  of  the  twenty-four  courses  of 
priests,  and  the  ex-high  priests,  and  their  families;  (b) 
jpresbuteroi^  elders,  who  must  be  of  the  tribe  of  Levi, 
and  who  w^ere  archontes  ton  laoii.^  rulers  of  the  people ; 
and  (c)  graminateis^  scribes,  who  must,  also,  be  Levites. 
In  criminal  trials  the  acting  high  priest  presided,  ex- 
officio.  (Lightfoot’s  Works,  iv,  251.  Keunen,  Schurer, 
Lehrljuch.^  der  neutest  zeitgest.^  § 123.)  The  members 
must  all  be  believers  in  the  law  of  Moses.  Once  they 
were  famed  for  wisdom,  judgment  and  discretion,  and 
formed  a body  more  able  and  influential  than  the  300 
of  Venice,  and  the  like  of  which  is  rarely  seen  on  earth. 
So  strong  was  the  confldence  in  its  ability  and  integri- 
ty, that  it  was  treated  with  the  highest  consideration, 
and  its  decision  was  regarded  as  almost  infallible.  It 
was  to  the  Jewish,  what  Parliament  is  to  the  English, 


96 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


nation.  It  possessed  judicial,  and  administrative  pow- 
ers ; and  its  decisions  were  final.  As  tlie  High  court  of  jus- 
tice, it  had  cognizance  of  all  ecclesiastical  law,  and,  also, 
the  power  of  judging  a false  prophet  (Tract.  Sanhed., 
1-6).  It  could  excommunicate;  and  before  the  Eoman 
conquest  had  the  power  of  life  and  death.  By  its  own 
neglect,  which  grew  out  of  its  aversion  to  shedding  blood, 
it  first  lost  this  power.  (Lightfoot’s  "Works,  xi,  3, 10,  31.) 
And  when,  A.  D.  7,  Judea  was  reduced  to  a Homan 
province,  the  right  of  the  sword,  which  Home  always 
reserved  to  itself  in  provinces  incorporated  in  the  Em- 
pire, was  taken  away.  This,  however,  the  Talmud  says, 
was  not  strictly  carried  out  until  40  years  before  the 
destruction  of  the  city,  that  is,  A.  D.  30,  the  year  of 
J esus’  death.  Pilate  was  the  first  governor  who  com- 
pelled the  Jews  to  strictly  observe  this  law.  The  San- 
hedrim could  give  sentence  of  death,  but  the  procurator 
must  confirm  and  execute  it  (John  xviii,  31). 

At  that  time  no  less  than  twenty  of  the  priestly 
members  belonged  to  four  families,  eight  of  these  being 
of  the  family  of  Annas.  These  with  their  ^‘kindred  of 
the  high  priest,”  (Acts  iv,  6)  were  powerful  forces  in 
the  body.  And  their  spirit  and  action,  as  delineated 
by  Josephus,  agree  entirely  with  those  given  in  the 
New  Testament.  (Jos.  Vita,  38.  Bell  Jud.  ii,  126,  &c.) 
All  ot  the  high  priests,  and  chief  priests,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  house  of  Fabri,  were  denounced  as  wick- 
ed men,  and  were  so  ignorant,  that  they  surrounded 
themselves  with  scribes,  learned  in  the  law  and  customs, 
and  were  watched  by  ‘‘Commoners,”  who  were  Phari- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


97 


sees.  Uence  the  grouping  together,  in  the  Temple,  of 
the  priests,  scribes  and  Pharisees.  (Pahbi  Wise.  Hist, 
of  Ileb.,  pg.  48.) 

The  names  and  characters  of  five  of  the  members 
are  given  in  the  New  Testament.  Annas  and  Joseph 
Caiaphas  have  already  been  sketched.  Nicodemus,  whose 
night- visit  to  Jesus,  whose  word  in  His  behalf,  which 
aroused  the  suspicions  of  the  council  against  him,  and 
whose  noble  kindness  to  His  dead  body  are  so  well 
known,  was  a man  scrupulously  just.  His  blameless 
life,  his  ability  to  weigh  matters  calmly,  fully,  honestly; 
his  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  law  and  prophets — 
making  him  ‘^a  master  in  Israel’’ — and  with  the  modes 
of  procedure,  and  his  long  experience  in  ofiice,  gave  his 
opinions  great  weight.  He  was  looking  for  the  Mes- 
siah, and  often  consulted  Simeon,  while  alive,  about  His 
coming.  Friendly  to  Jesus,  and  ultimately  a convert, 
he,  probably,  was  not  present  at  His  trial.  Joseph  of 
Arimathea,  whose  name  has  honorable  mention  in  all 
the  Gospels,  and  has  always  commanded  the  respect  of 
the  Jews,  refused  to  be  present  at  the  second  session. 
And  at  the  first  one  he  had  not  sugTcatatitTieimenos^^ 
voted  (E.  Y.,  ^^consented”)  for  either  houlei^  the  sen- 
tence, or  for  taxeij  the  plan,  agreed  upon  to  extort  Pi- 
late’s consent.  Perhaps  he  left  before  the  vote  was 
taken.  He  had  been,  evidently,  an  inquiring  disciple, 
and  on  this  day,  perhaps,  it  was  that  he  became  fully 

[*  Thiis  ^vord,  found  often  in  the  Septuagint,  but  in  the  Kew 
Testament  only  in  Luke  xxiii,  51,  (its  synonym  is  in  Acts  i,  26,) 
signifies  calcium  adjicere,  cas^  the  ballot.  The  use  of  this  word 
shows  how  the  vote  was  taken.] 


98 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


determined  to  become  a- follower  of  Jesus.  Gamaliel, 
the  son  of  Rabbi  Simeon,  and  grandson  of  the  celebra- 
ted Hillel,  was  at  that  time,  and  for  several  years  after, 
as  he  had  been  for  some  years  before,  President  of  the 
Sanhedrim.  He  was  a strong  Pharisee,  and  celebrated 
nomodidasJcalos^  doctor  of  the  law,  and  was  the  first 
one  to  whom  the  title,  ‘^Eabban,’’  “Our  Master,’’  was 
given.  His  notions  were  right.  His  words  were  elo- 
quent. His  thoughts  were  weighty.  He  was  a wise 
and  enlightened  man,  who  opposed  furious  and  unreas- 
oning zealots.  His  opinion  often  decided  the  council. 
(Acts  V.  Rabbi  Wise.  Hist.  Heb.)  His  feeling  toward 
the  followers  of  Jesus  may  be  judged  correctly,  per- 
haps, from  the  fact  that  his  pupil,  Saul,  was  the  foremost 
persecutor  of  Stephen.  If  present,  he  did  not  preside 
at  the  trial  of  Jesus.  He  may  not  have  voted  with  the 
council,  but  he  did  not  show  himself  as  J esus’  friend. 

Jewish  writings  have  preserved  the  names  of  some  of 
the  other  members.  Hillel  2d  was  a man  great  in  in- 
tellectual strength  and  stores.  His  sayings  were  quoted 
as  authority.  His  father  and  grandfather  had  stood 
high  in  position  and  influence.  The  latter,  50  years 
before,  had  presided  at  the  trial  of  Herod  the  Great, 
and  had  voted  for  his  death.  The  five  sons  of  Annas 
were  there,  Eleazar,  Jonathan,  Theophalis,  Mathias,  and 
Annas,  Jr.,  whose  character  was  further  stained  with 
the  murder  of  James,  the  brother  of  Jesus  (see  preface). 
Also  Alexander,  and  Jochanan,  called  John  (Acts  iv,  6). 
Beside  these  sat  Jozar  and  Eleazar,  sons  of  Simon 
Balthus,  whose  sister,  Mariamne,  belle  of  Jerusalem, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


99 


married  Herod,  and  whose  state  and  volnptnonsness 
made  them  objects  of  popular  hate.  Simon,  and  his 
sons,  Elionus  and  Ishmael,  were  there.  So  was  Phabi, 
the  handsomest  man  in  Jerusalem,  whose  dress  cost 
$9,000,  and  whose  luxury  and  greed  made  him  notori- 
ous. He  was  eager  to  condemn  the  Man  of  simple  tastes. 
Hear  by  was  the  Sadducee,  Ezias,  a man  proud  of  his 
great  ancestral  name,  and  of  his  national  history.  He 
opposed  Hillel  on  all  great  questions  of  policy,  and  was 
thoroughly  one  with  his  own  party  in  this  trial.  Hear  him 
was  Jonathan  Ben  Hebadai,  infamous  as  a glutton,  and 
a fierce  persecutor  of  Paul.  And  Ananias,  too,  who 
commanded  one  to  smite  Paul  on  the  face,  was  there. 
With  them  sat  Issachar  Kefor  Barkai,  who  would  not 
sacrifice,  except  in  silk  gloves,  for  fear  of  soiling  hands, 
which  were  soiled  by  wrongs,  and  were  afterwards  cut 
off  by  order  of  King  Agrippa.  (Geikie,  Life  of  Jesus,) 
Intermingled  with  these  were  men  of  inferior  note, 
elders,  priests  and  scribes,  and  Sadducees,  all.  Widely 
separated  on  many  points,  on  this  trial  all  were  agreed. 
Besides  common  hatred,  each  class  had  special  motives 
for  hostility.  Priests  hated  Him,  because  that  He 
taught  that  to  obey  was  better  than  sacrifice.  Elders 
never  forgave  Him  for  having  judged  tradition  by  Rev- 
elation. Scribes  were  envenomed,  because  He  declared 
the  spirit  was  more  important  than  the  letter.  He 
had  constantly  shocked  the  prejudices,  and  humbled 
the  ambition  and  pride  of  all.  His  real  offense  was 
that  the  healthful  influence  He  was  exerting  was  un- 
dermining their  corrupt  theocracy,  and  with  it  their 


100 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


power  and  influence.  What  cared  they  for  His  purity 
of  life  and  morals!  -What,  for  His  beneflcent  works  and 
blessed  words!  He  had,  in  holding  up  their  hypocrisies, 
hollow  forms,  binding  and  blinding  traditions  to  the 
public  gaze,  exasperated  them.  Their  position  and  in- 
fluence would  be  swept  away,  unless  He  was  stopped. 
And  now  the  hour  of  revenge — the  hour  for  which  they 
had  watched  and  waited  so  long — had  come.  He  who 
had  applied  the  light  and  truth  of  God  to  unrealities, 
and  had  showed  them  to  be  such;  He  who  had  gone 
against  their  most  cherished  idols,  cleansed  their  Tem- 
ple to  their  hurt  and  confusion;  He  who  had  told  the 
people  of  a nobler  freedom,  and  of  salvation  by  grace, 
through  Himself — He  now  stood  a prisoner  before  them. 
And  to  save  those  ecclesiastical  institutions  in  which 
their  honor  and  proflt  were  bound  up.  He  must  die. 

The  Homan  soldiers,  as  their  presence  would  be  cere- 
monially defiling,  were  stopped  outside.  But  the  Jew- 
ish officers,  constables  and  servants  were  present,  and 
in  their  places,  with  their  official  weapons,  with  their 
cords  and  thongs.  The  scribes  had  pen  in  hand,  ready 
to  n9te  the  proceedings.  The  witnesses  were  brought  in. 
Jesus  was  placed,  standing,  before  the  President,  and 
where  He  could  be  seen  by  all.  He  was  held  fast  by 
the  officers,  and  kept  bound  during  thfs,  but  not  during 
the  succeeding,  trial.  J ohn  was  there,  but  he  could  do 
his  Master  no  good.  Jesus  was  alone  and  unbefriended. 
As  He  gazed  upon  His  judges,  he  met  eyes  fierce  with 
wrath.  The  labors  and  conflicts  of  the  night  must 
have  told  heavily  on  His  strength.  But  conscious  of® 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


101 


spotless  integrity,  and  of  the  righteonsness  of  His 
character,  claims  and  cause,  He  was  undaunted.  His 
serene  countenance,  and  His  quiet,  self-possessed  bearing, 
easily  told  of  His  gleat  strength  of  character,  of  the 
holy  calm  within,  and  of  His  profound  reliance  on  God. 

All  were  ready.  Time  was  pressing.  The  trial  be- 
gan. And  so  rapidly  was  it  hurried  through,  that  by, 
or  not  much  after,  4 A.  M.,  Jesus  was  under  sentence 
of  death. 

Unless  it  was  the  implied  one  of  being  a false  proph- 
et (John  xi,  47),  no  charge  was  preferred  against  Jesus.* 
The  object  of  the  council  was  not  to  elicit  truth,  or 
shield  the  innocent,  but,  through  legal  forms,  to  put 
Him  to  death.  Facts  would  not  warrant  such  a judg- 
ment. They  sought  false  witnesses.  Not  those  who 
would  tell  lies  outright.  But  those  who  could  give  a 
testimony  in  which  truth  and  a lie  would  have  such 
proportions,  that  it  (the  testimony)  could  have  so  much 
semblance  of  truth,  and  so  much  appearance  of  right, 
that  it  would  be,  without  being  formulated  into  a 
charge,  authority  enough  to  warrant  His  death. 

According  to  the  Talmud,  the  course  pursued  in  this 
trial  was  in  exact  conformity  to  the  law,  as  laid  down 
in  the  Jewish  law  books.  The  crime  charged  against 
Jesus  was,  ^^seduction  of  the  people.”  A judicial  and 
essential  feature  of  the  procedure  was  the  concealment 
of  two  witnesses  behind  a partition,  so  that,  without 

pTliose  who  wish  to  seo  what  Jewish  writers  say,  may  con- 
sult Goldstein’s  and  Salvador’s  Trial  of  Jesus.  An 

abstract  of  the  charges  may  be  found  in  Abbot’s  Life  of  Jesus.] 


102 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


being  seen,  they  could  hear  all  that  the  accused  said. 
He  was  then  made  to  repeat  His  blasphemy.  This  the 
two  witnesses  heard,  and  gave  testimony  to  that  effect. 
If  this  was  done,  it  was  only  after  the  effort  spoken  of 
above,  had  failed.  That  testimony  was  either  too  irrel- 
evant, or  too  full  of  contradictions,  to  be  accepted  by 
even  that  tribunal.  They  must  have,  they  sought,  two 
witnesses  whose  testimony  would  agree  (Hum.  xxxv, 
30;  Deut.  xvii,  6;  xix,  15),  ^^but  found  none.’’  At 
last  two  false  witnesses  appeared.  These  may  have 
been  the  two  spoken  of  in  the  Talmud — if  its  statement 
is  a fact.  They  testified  to  a word  spoken  by  Jesus 
two  years  before.  Their  testimony  was  like  the  fact. 
But  their  perversion  gave  the  w^ord  a false  meaning. 
(Com.  Matt,  xxvi,  61;  Mark  xiv,  58,  with  John  ii,  19.) 
Even  had  it  been  valid,  it  would  have  only  proved 
blasphemy  against  the  Temple.  And  this  could  not  be 
a crime  upon  which  the  Sanhedrim  could  pronounce 
sentence  of  death.  (But  see  Acts  vi,  13.)  But  the  witness- 
es did  not  agree;  and  the  testimony  could  not  be  taken. 

The  case  was  on  the  point  of  breaking  down.  Time 
was  pressing.  The  council  were  at  their  wits’  ends. 
Caiaphas  was  becoming  uneasy.  ' Should  one  of  the 
council  speak  out  for  Jesus,  what  then?  Unless  some- 
thing self-criminating  be  forced  from  Him,  He  must 
be  let  go — or,  be  killed,  without  form  of  law.  Caiaphas 
rises  from  his  seat,  greatly  agitated.  Hauglitily,  an- 
grily, he  addressed  the  prisoner,  ‘^Answerest  Thou 
nothing?  What  is  it  which  these  witness  against  Thee?” 

But  Jesus  held  His  peace. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


103 


As  we  go  deeper  into  the  history  of  the  passion,  we 
are  the  more  and  more  impressed  with  the  amazing 
contrast  between  the  dignity,  gentleness,  wisdom  of  the 
supremely  great  and  righteous  One,  and  the  absence  of 
all  these  in  His  accusers  and  judges.  This  is  as  con- 
spicuous in  His  silences  as  in  His  sayings.  A word 
from  Him  might  have  changed  the  whole  direction  of  the 
trial.  How,  as  when  before  Pilate,  He  is,  as  a Lamb, 
to  die  for  us,  and  He  opened  not  His  mouth.  He  lets 
His  dignified  demeanor,  as  He  stands  there  at  the  bar, 
be  a living  testimony.  His  Personal  Presence  be  a 
power,  sending  conviction  home  to  conscience,  mind 
and  heart,  that  this  is,  indeed,  the  Christ.  Accord- 
ing to  God’s  decree  and  His  own  oft-repeated  word.  He 
must  be  crucified  because  of  His  own  confession  of  His 
Divine  Sonship.  His  death  must  be  a public  declara- 
tion of  this  fact,  and  of  His  Kingly  character  founded 
on  this  fact.  And  when  any  question  came  up  con- 
nected with  these  facts,  or  which  concerned  His  Per- 
son or  work.  He  was  ever  ready  to  speak.  Other- 
wise, He  was  silent,  as  He  was  now,  to  all  this  false 
testimony. 

This  silence  was  confounding,  was  beginning  to  tell 
upon  the  consciences  of  the  council,  must  be  broken  in 
upon.  A sudden — was  it  not  a Satanic? — inspiration 
seized  Caiaphas.  He  put  Jesus  under  the  solemn  ad- 
juration: adjure  Thee,  by  the  living  God,  that  Thou 

tell  us  whether  Thou  be  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God?” 

The  bitterly  malignant  sarcasm  poured  out  in  this^ 
question,  shows  (a)  the  dread  misgivings  which  lay 


104 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


under  all  their  conspiracies,  and  (b)  that  the  object  of 
the  adjuration  was  not  to  discover  truth,  but  to  make 
the  decisive  answer  the  decisive  enormity. 

No  Jew  could  refuse  this  adjuration,  nor  decline  to 
answer  under  it.  And,  since  it  was  an  appeal  to  the 
living  Grod,  w^ho  could  take  cognizance  of,  and  punish 
perjury,  it  had  all  the  sanction  of  an  oath.  (Gen.  xxiv, 
7;  Lev.  v,  1;  Num.  v,  14-22;  1 Kings  xxii,  16;  2 
Chron.  xxvi,  13;  Rev.  xxix,  24.  Michalis’  Laws  of 
Moses^ 

The  first  part  of  the  question,  ^^Art  Thou  the  Christ?” 
could  not  be  the  foundation  of  a capital  charge,  unless 
completed  and  explained,  as  it  always  had  been  in  the 
teaching  of  Jesus,  by  the  second,  ^^the  Son  of  God.” 
It  is,  therefore,  important  for  us  to  know  what  was  the 
precise  import  of  these  phrases,  as  they  lay  in  the  minds 
of  Caiaphas  and  of  the  council. 

There  were  persons  who  received  Jesus  as  the  Messi- 
ah, and  as  Divine.  But  they  did  it  only  because  they 
were  prepared,  and  because  to  them  the  fact  was  personal- 
ly revealed.  (Luke  ii,  1;  Matt,  xvi,  17.)  But  the  eyes  of 
the  rulers  were  blinded.  Hence,  though  the  Messiah’s 
Divinity  was  abundantly  asserted  in  their  own  Scriptures 
,(Bs.  xlv,  5,  6;  cx;  Is.  vii.  14;  ix,  6,  &c),  and  had  they 
honestly  studied  them,  they  might  have  seen  it  there,  they 
did  not.  They  saw  His  coming  foretold,  and  expected 
Him.  They  saw  not  His  Divinity,  and  hence,  to  them 
the  Messiah  was  to  be  a mere  man,  and,  only  in  a subor- 
dinate sense,  the  Son  of  God,  viz:  one  eminently  holy, 
and  invested  witli  divine  power.  This  was  the  teach- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


105. 


ing  of  their  Talmiids  and  Targums.  This  was  in- 
grained in  them  from  the  solemn  declaration  recited 
every  morning  and  evening  in  their  hearing,  ^^Hear,  O 
Israel,  the  Lord  oiir  God  is  one  Lord.^’  And  this  it  was 
that  made  “Christ  crucified’’  a stumbling  block,  to  the 
Jews,  from  the  first.  (1  Cor.  i,  23.) 

Trypho,  the  learned  Jew,  of  Ephesus,  says  that  the 
Jews  in  his  day,  A.  D.  150,  and  so  in  the  time  of  Christ, 
did  not  believe  that  the  Messiah  was  to  be  the  Son  of 
God.  “We  Jews  expect  the  Messiah  will  come  as  a 
man  from  men.”  The  learned  Jew,  Orobio,  in  the  17th 
century,  aflSirmed  “that  if  Messiah  Himself  were  to 
claim  to  be  divine,  and  work  miracles  in  support  of 
that  claim,  he  ought  to  be  put  to  death  by  stoning,  as 
guilty  of  blasphemy.”  Salvador,  a Jew,  in  com- 
menting on  the  trial  of  Jesus,  says:  “He  was  tried 
fairly,  and  condemned  legally.  Not  His  claims  as 
prophet,  but  His  speaking  of  Himself  as  God,  this  it 
was  that  was  shocking  blasphemy  to  the  people. 
The  Sanhedrim,  having  adjudged  that  Jesus  had  pro- 
faned the  name  of  God  by  usurping  it  to  Himself,  ap- 
plied the  law  of  blasphemy  (Dent,  xiii,  18-20),  and  pro- 
nounced capital  punishment.”  This,  the  current  belief 
of  the  Jews  at  the  present  day,  was  also  the  clear  and 
deep  conviction  of  the  Sanhedrim. 

Secondly,  their  hostility  to  Jesus  did  not  arise  from 
His  claims  to  be  the  Messiah.  They  may  have  consid- 
ered it  a folly  and  a wrong,  but  they  could  not  consider 
it  an  outrage  on  the  honor  of  God  for  Him,  or  for  any 
one,  to  call  himself  the  Messiah.  Though  no  mention  of 


106 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


the  Messianic  hope  is  made  in  the  Book  of  Wisdom, 
nor  in  the  writings  of  Philo  or  of  Josephus,  yet  that  hope 
was,  as  it  still  is,  enshrined  in  the  Jewish  heart.  The 
Hebrew  Scriptures  are  full  of  it.  In  the  time  of  Christ 
the  expectation  was  universal.  Every  false  Christ  that 
arose  was  welcomed.  What  people  mused  in  their 
hearts,  the  Pharisees  directly  asked  John  Baptist, 
^Whether  or  no  he  was  the  Christ?”  (Luke  iii,  15; 
John  i,  21-23.)  The  people’s  effort  to  make  Jesus 
King,  and  His  triumphal  entry  into  Jerusalem,  plainly 
show  that  they  would  have  received  Him  as  Messiah, 
had  He  not  claimed  to  be  more  than  a man. 

Jesus  did  not,  in  public,  claim  or  declare  that  He 
was  the  Christ.  He  allowed  not  demons  to  proclaim 
Him,  and  forbade  His  disciples  from  telling  any  man 
that  He  was,  the  Christ.  To  John’s  disciples,  sent  by 
him  with  the  question,  ‘^Art  Thou  He  that  should 
come?”  He  replied  by  pointing  to  His  miracles.  So 
answered  He  the  Jews,  who  asked  Him,  ^‘Tell  us  plain- 
ly, Art  Thou  the  Christ?”  He  could  not  say,  “1  am;” 
for  the  meaning  which  they  attached  to  the  word  had 
nothing  in  common  with  that  in  which  He  used  it. 
He  could  not  say,  am  not;”  for  He  was,  indeed,  the 
promised  and  long  expected  Messiah.  To  them  He  said, 
^‘The  works  I do  bear  witness  of  Me.”  Once  only,  save 
to  His  own  disciples  privately,  did  He  directly  declare 
His  Messiahship,  and  that  was  to  a Samaritan  woman. 
While  the  people  were  constantly  agitated  about  the 
question,  some  saying  that  ^‘He  was  the  Christ,”  others 
saying  ^^no,”  some,  that  ^^He  was  a good  Man,”  others. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


107 


that  deceivetli  the  people,”  none  could  say,  He 

has  said  am  the  Christ.”  This,  then,  could  not  be 
the  basis  or  motive  of  the  rulers’  hostility,  nor  the  ground 
of  their  charge.  .(Mark  i,  34;  Matt,  xvi,  20;  John 
iv,  26;  X,  24;  vii,  45-53.)  Even  had  He  said,  “I  am 
the  Christ,”  the  Sanhedrim’s  duty  was  simply  to  demand 
the  evidence,  and  by  that  decide  His  right  to  the  title. 

But  this  question  was  not  before  their  minds,  except 
as  the  peg  on  which  to  hang  the  real  issue.  Caiaphas’ 
question  was  two-fold:  “Art  Thou  the  Christ,”  and  as 
such,  “the  Son  of  Cod?”  In  the  latter,  not  in  the  form- 
er, he  sought  the  foundation  for  a capital  charge.  And 
Caiaphas,  in  putting  this  question,  must  have  had  be- 
fore His  mind  that  meaning  of  the  phrase,  “the  Son  of 
God,”  which  was  attached  to  it  by  the  people,  as  applied 
to  Jesus.  What  was  that?  To  a crowd,  in  which  was  a 
deputation  sent  to  him  from  the  Sanhedrim,  John  Bap- 
tist had  pointed  out  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God.  “He 
that  sent  me  to  baptize,  told  me  that  I would  know 
Him  by  The  Spirit  descending  and  abiding  upon  Him. 
I saw  this.  I bare  witness  that  this  is  the  Son  of 
God.”  (John  i.)  Afterwards,  Jesus  was  confessed  to  be 
such  by  demons,  and  by  men — as  by  Nathaniel,  the 
disciples,  Martha.  She  did  this  within  two  miles  of 
Jerusalem,  before  a crowd,  and  within  a few  days  of 
this  trial.  (Mark  viii,  29;  xvi,  17;  xxviii,  40-43,  54; 
John  xi,  27.) 

Just  as  carefully  as  Jesus  avoided  speaking  in  public 
about  His  Messiahship,  just  so  carefully  did  He  pub- 
licly proclaim  His  Divine  Son  ship.  He  directly  used 


108 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


the  name,  Son,  of  Himself.  He  repeatedly,  in  the  presence 
of  the  multitude,  called  God,  His  Father,  and  declared 
that  He  was  sent  by,  and  came  from.  Him.  Once  the* 
people  said  to  Him,  ^‘For  a good  work  we  stone  Thee 
not,  but  for  blasphemy;  because  that  Thou,  being  a 
man,  makest  Thyself  God.’’  And  this  was  ^^because  He 
said,  T am  the  Son  of  God.’”  And  this  had  been  one  of 
the  charges  against  Him  on  His  former  trial,  during  the 
first  year  of  His  ministry  (see  pgs.  xii-xiv.  John  iii,  18 
V,  17,  25;  viii,  30,  40;  ix,  35-37;  x,  36,  29-33;  xi,  4.) 

Thus,  from  His  own  words,  and  from  current 
reports,  there  grew  up  in  the  minds  of  the  people  a 
strong  conviction  that  He  claimed  to  be  a Divine  Per- 
son, and  co-equal  with  God.  And  this  conviction,  had 
any  doubt  lingered  in  the  mind,  become  fixed  by  an 
incident  which  occurred  only  two  days  before  this  trial. 
Jesus,  then,  put  to  the  Pharisees  this  question:  ‘^What 
think  ye  of  Christ,  whose  Son  is  He?”  They  answered, 
‘‘The  Son,” — not,  “of  God,”  but — “of  David.”  “How, 
then,”  asked  He,  “doth  David,  in  Spirit,  call  Him 
Lord?”  They  instantly  saw  the  point.  The  Messiah  is 
to  be  the  Son  of  God.  And  this  they  could  not  believe. 

These  facts  enable  us  to  see  what  was  in  the  minds  of 
the  Sanhedrim,  and  what  was  the  meaning  attached  to 
the  words,  as  used  by  Caiaphas.  The  Christ,  they  be- 
lieved, was  to  be  no  more  than  a man.  J esus  claims  to 
be,  and  wishes  the  nation  to  accept  Him  as,  the  Son  of 
God.  We  know,  they  say  that  He  is  not  the  Son 
of  God.  If,  now.  He  says  He  is  such,  this  is  blas- 
phemy. If  He  says  He  is  not,  then,  by  His  own  con- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


109 


fession.  He  is  guilty  of  falsehood  in  constantly  claiming 
to  be  such;  and  further,  also,  since  He  connects  Son- 
ship  and  Messiahship  in  Himself,  this  is  conclusive 
evidence  that  He  cannot  be  Christ,  for  the  true  Christ  is 
not  divine.  This  is  the  very  pith  and  point  of  the  ques- 
tion, Ei  su  e%  Art  Thou  really — not,  do  you  claim,  call 
or  make  yourself  to  be,  but  are  you  actually — the  Christ, 
the  Son  of  God — in  the  sense  in  which  you  have  used 
the  phrase,  in  which  I now  use  it,  and  in  the  sense  in 
which  the  Sanhedrim  understood  you  to  use  it  when 
you  were  before  us  before?  (see  page  xiii.)  And  if 
the  phrase  be  dependent  upon  Eipess — which  is  the 
more  natural — then  the  force  of  the  question  is,  ^^Tell 
us.  If  Thou  art,  &c.,  &c.”  And  that  both  parties  un- 
derstood the  question  in  the  same  sense,  is  clear  from 
(a)  Jesus’  answer,  and  (b)  the  council’s  saying  to  Pi- 
late, ‘‘We  have  a law  by  which  He  ought  to  die,  for  He 
made  Himself  the  Son  of  God.” 

Jesus  was  aware  of  their  malignant  purpose  in  the 
question,  and  of  His  immediate  condemnation  conse- 
quent upon  His  answer.  He  was  under  the  adjuration, 
and  must  answer.  And  He  did.  Without  excitement 
of  mind  or  manner,  without  confusion  of  intellect,  or 
misconception  of  the  phrase.  He,  in  that  supreme  mo- 
ment of  His  life,  gave  the  legal  reply,  “Thou  hast  said.” 
And  in  the  use  of  this  Rabbinical  phrase  He  accepted  as 
His  own  affirmation  and  oath,  the  whole  contents  of  the 
question.  “Art  thou  the  Christ?”  “Ho,”  answered 
John  Baptist.  “Art  Thou  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God?” 
And  Jesus,  under  oath,  before  the  highest  judicial  tri- 


no 


THE  HOLT  DEATH. 


hunal  of  the  land,  calmly  gave — as  the  fundamental 
thought  is,  in  Mark — the  self-sacrificing  am.’’ 

The  question  was,  evidently,  put  by  the  high  priest, 
as  the  first  one  of  an  official  examination.'  And  Jesus, 
evidently  desirous  to  hasten  a decision  which  He  knew 
had  been  already  taken,  not  only  answered  it  promptly, 
but  spontaneously  went  beyond  it.  That  there  might 
be  no  possibility  of  mistake  concerning  His  Person, 
either  then,  or  in  all  coming  time.  He  added  to  this 
sublime  word  an  assertion  of  His  Kingly  character,  ju. 
dicial  prerogative,  position  of  exalted  honor,  and  par- 
ticipation of  God’s  universal  sovereignty,  and  that  all  this 
belonged  to  Him  as  the  Son  of  Man.  ^^Besides,  jpleen 
(Matt.)  also,  Ttai^  (Mark) — over  and  beyond,  in  addition 
to  my  oath — I say  unto  you,  arte^  after  this  (Matt.) 
apo  ton  nun^  from  this  now  (Luke),  ye  shall  see  the  Son 
of  Man  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  the  power  of  God, 
and  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven.”  In  the  judgments 
coming  upon  the  land,  in  the  spread  of  My  cause  by  the 
spiritual  conquest  of  My  foes,  in  My  continuous  world- 
historical  manifestations,  and  in  My  coming  in  the  clouds 
of  heaven — in  all  this  will  you  see  proof  of  My  Messianic 
majesty,  will  you  be  convinced  that  I am  the  Son  of 
God,  and  am,  also,  the  Son  of  Man? 

No  sublimer  word  was  ever  uttered.  A helpless 
prisoner,  in  the  depth  of  humiliation,  and  subjected  to 
outi*age  and  indignity,  He  says  to  His  judges,  who  should 
have  known  that  they  were  condemning  their  King,  of 
whom  all  the  prophets  had  spoken,  this  scene  shall  be 
reversed.  The  time  is  coming  when  I shall  be  Judge, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Ill 


and  you  must  before  Me  stand.  And  the  solemn  ear- 
nestness and  energy  of  spirit  with  which  He  spoke, 
must  have  given  them  the  impression  that  He,  at  least, 
believed  what  He  spake. 

But  such  an  impression,  if  made,  was  not  allowed  to 
be  developed.  The  council  had  gone  too  far  to  retreatv 
Jesus  had,  moreover,  given  them  the  hold  which  they  had 
sought.  In  His  two-fold  answer  He  had  plainly  declared 
His  Messiahship,  Sonshlp,  and  participation  of  divine 
glory,  as  the  Son  of  Man.  This  was  enough.  They 
had  covertly  insinuated  their  charge  in  the  phrase,  ^^Son 
of  God.’’  He  had  confessed  to  it.  Nothing  remained 
but  to  formulate  this  confession  into  the  crime  of  blas- 
phemy. Instantly  Caiaphas  arose,  and  in  real  or  hypo- 
critical sorrow  and  indignation,  rent  his  clothes — the 
simla^  robe  of  blue — from  the  neck  down,  saying,  as  he 
rent  it,  ^^He  hath  spoken  blasphemy:  what  further  need 
have  we  of  witnesses?  Behold,  now  ye  have  heard  His 
blasphemy.  What  think  ye?” 

Some  may  have  hesitated.  Others  may  have  been 
conscientious.  Most  w’ere  blinded  by  prejudice,  and 
filled  with  hate.  The  reasons  for  condemning  were  too 
powerful  to  be  resisted  by  any,  except  the  strongest  na- 
tures. The  unanimous  (Mark  xiv,  64)  voice  was,  ^^He 
is  ish  mavetii^^  a man  of  death;  in  the  Greek,  enochos 
th^natou  est%  he  is  liable,  obnoxious  to  (E.  Y.,  guilty 
of)  death.  “They  all  condemned  Him  to  be  guilty  of 
death.” 

A second  session,  held  in  the  daytime,  was  necessary 
to  make  the  proceed  ngs  legal,  and  gave  validity  to  the 


112 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


sentence.  It  was  now  about  4 A.  M.  Kecess  was 
called  until  about  5 A.  M.  The  members  separated, 
not  to  sleep — the  excitement  was  too  great  for  that — 
but  to  consult  together  privately  as  to  the  plan  of  pro- 
cedure before  Pilate.  Jesus,  meanwhile,  as  excommu- 
nicated, and  under  the  sentence  of  death,  and  so  out  of 
the  protection  of  the  law,  was  regarded  as  a fit  object  of 
sport.  The  council  did  not  forbid.  Sadducean  conser- 
vatism was  indifferent.  Pharisean  zeal  was  at  fever 
heat.  There  was  no  security  against  outrage.  And 
He  who  had  lived  only  to  bless,  who  had  but  to  speak, 
and  they  were  all  dead  men,  was  given  over  to  the  bru- 
tal violence  of  the  Temple  guards,  in  whose  charge  He 
was  left.  Then  followed  a scene  to  which  history  fur- 
nishes no  parallel.  This  was  the 

SECOND  SEEIES  OF  INSULTS. 

He,  in  prophecy,  had  said  (Is.  1,  6),  “1  hid  not  my  • 
face  from  spitting.”  Now  was  the  beginning  of  the 
fulfillment.  In  their  wild  triumph,  the  members  of  the 
council  vented  their  malice  on  Jesus’  Person,  and  the 
servants  imitated  their  superiors.  They  spit  in  His 
face — a bitter  disgrace,  a mark  of  the  greatest  contempt 
and  abhorrence.  (Num.  xii,  14;  Dent,  xxv,  9.)  This 
insult  was  the  signal  for  the  outburst  of  outrage.  The 
men  that  held  Jesus  mocked  Him  as  Prophet  and  King. 
As  a sign  of  the  death-sentence,  and  of  his  unworthi- 
ness to  see  the  light,  the  face  of  the  criminal  was,  im- 
mediately after  condemnation,  covered  (Esth.  vii,  8). 
So  blindfolded  they  Jesus.  Then  some  kolajphezan. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  113 

struck  Him  with  tlieir  fists  on  the  head  or  face.  Oth- 
ers smote  Him  violently  in  the  face  with  their  batons, 
or  with  the  palms  of  their  hands.  The  strikers  shouted 
out  in  derision,  ‘‘Divine” — the  verb,  propheeteuson^ 
signifies  here,  declare  something  not  discernable  by  the 
natural  powers — “who  smote  Thee.”  And  many  other 
things  blasphemously  spake  they  against  Him.  Thus 
would  they  reproach  Jesus,  and  expose  Him  to  derision. 
Thus,  as  He,  in  prophecy,  had  long  before  foretold, 
“many  bulls  compassed  Him,  strong  bulls  of  Bashan, 
beset  Him  round.  They  opened  their  mouths  against 
Him,  as  a ravening  and  roaring  lion.”  And  as  we  look  back 
upon  this  scene  of  outraged  majesty,  we  are  amazed  at 
the  self-restraint,  the  divine  patience,  the  infinite  com- 
posure of  the  Sufierer.  He  resists  not,  reproaches  not, 
murmurs  not,  while  receiving  all  this  cruelty  and  scorn. 
This  gives  a new  insight  into  His  character.  This 
gives  a new  force  to  the  words  of  one  who,  powerless  to 
help,  witnessed  it  all  with  pitying  eyes,  and  more  than 
fifty  years  afterwards,  when  an  exile  in  Patmos,  for  Je- 
sus’ sake,  recalled  the  scene:  “I,  John,  your  brother 
and  companion  in  the  tribulation  and  patience  of  Jesus 
Christ.” 

Section  V. 

JESUS’  THIRD  EZAMIKATIOH. 

His  Second  Trial  Before  the  Sanhedrim. 

Matt.xxvii,  1, 2 ; Mark  xv,  1 ; Lk.  xxii,  66-71 ; xxiii,  1 ; John  xviii,  28. 

The  Council  convenes.]  When  the  morning  was 
come,  as  soon  as  it  was  day,  straightway  all  the  chief 


114 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


priests,  and  the  elders  of  the  people,  and  the  scribes, 
came  together. 

And  led  Him  into  their  council. 

The  examination.]  Saying,  Art  Thou  the  Christ? 
tell  us. 

And  He  said  unto  them.  If  I tell  you,  ye  will  not  be- 
lieve; and  if  I also  ask  you,  ye  will  not  answer  Me,  nor 
let  Me  go.  Hereafter,  shall  the  Son  of  Man  sit  on  the 
right  hand  of  the  power  of  God. 

Then  said  they  all.  Art  Thou,  then,  the  Son  of  God? 

And  He  said  unto  them.  Ye  say  that  I am. 

Verdict.]  And  they  said,  What  need  we  of  any  fur- 
ther witness?  for  we  ourselves  have  heard  of  His  own 
mouth. 

Jesus  was  probably  taken  into  another  room,  while 
the  council  deliberated  how  best  to  act  so  as  to  induce 
Pilate  to  carry  out  their  sentence.  Was  is  not  while 
this  deliberation  was  going  on  that  the  following  inci- 
dent occurred: 

Judas’  Repentance  and  Awful  End. 

Matt,  xxvii,  3-10 ; Acts  i,  16-20. 

Then  Judas,  which  had  betrayed  Him,  when  he  saw 
that  He  was  condemned,  repented  himself,  and  brought 
again  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver  to  the  chief  priests  and 
elders,  saying, 

I have  sinned  in  that  I have  betrayed  innocent  blood. 

And  they  said,  What  is  that  to  us?  see  thou  to  that. 

And  he  cast  down  the  pieces  of  silver  in  the  Temple, 
and  departed,  and  went  and  hanged  himself. 

And  the  chief  priests  took  the  silver  pieces,  and  said. 
It  is  not  lawful  for  to  put  them  into  the  treasury,  be- 
cause it  is  the  price  of  blood.  And  they  took  counsel, 
and  bought  with  them  the  potter’s  held,  to  bury  stran- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


115 


gers  in.  Wherefore  that  field  was  called  the  field  of 
blood  unto  this  day.  Then  was  fulfilled  that  which  was 
spoken  by  Jeremy,  the  prophet  (xxxii,  8;  see  Lange, 
in  loco.)j  saying.  And  they  took  the  thirty  pieces  of 
silver,  the  price  of  Him  that  was  valued,  whom  they  of 
the  children  of  Israel  did  value;  and  gave  them  for  the 
potter’s  field,  as  the  Lord  appointed  me. 

The  other  version  is  this: 

This  Scripture  must  needs  have  been  fulfilled,  which 
the  Holy  Spirit,  by  the  mouth  of  David,  spake  before 
concerning  Judas,  which  was  guide  to  them  that  took 
Jesus.  For  he  was  numbered  with  us,  and  had  ob- 
tained part  of  this  ministry.  Now,  this  man  purchased 
a field  with  the  reward  of  iniquity;  and  falling  head- 
long, he  burst  asunder  in  the  midst,  and  all  his  bowels 
gushed  out.  And  it  was  known  unto  all  the  dwellers 
at  Jerusalem;  insomuch  as  that  field  is  called  in  their 
proper  tongue,  Aceldema,  that  is  to  say,  the  field  of 
blood.  For  it  is  written  in  the  book  of  Fsalms  (Ixix, 
25),  Let  his  habitation  be  desolate,  and  his  office  (mar.) 
let  another  take. 

This  interruption,  brief,  but  awful,  changed  not  the 
purpose  of  the  council.  For  we  read: 

And  the  whole  council,  having  held  a consultation.^ 
bound  Jesus.  And  when  they  had  bound  Him,  the 
whole  multitude  of  them  arose,  and  led — and  carried — 
Him  away  from  Oaiaphas  unto,  and  delivered  Him  to 
Pontius  Pilate,  the  governor.  And  it  was  early. 

Critics  now,  almost  without  exception,  agree  that  the 
council  held  a second  session.  Their  proceedings  had 
been  irreorular.  A criminal  charge  could  not  be  inves- 
tigated,  nor  a deatli-sentence  pronounced,  legally,  dur- 


116 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ing  the  night.  Roman  law,  also,  pronounced  the  latter 
invalid.  Even  had  the  proceedings  been  legal,  a second 
session  was  requisite.  And  this  sitting  must  be  held 
in  the  morning  before  the  counsellors  had  eaten  and 
drank.  (Salvador’s  Hist.  Inst.  Moses;  Keim’s  Life  of 
J e^sus^j 

This  meeting  was  called  to  overcome  the  irregulari- 
ties, make  valid  the  sentence,  formulate  the  charges,  so 
that  Pilate  must  confirm  and  execute  it,  and  to  mature 
the  plan  of  procedure  before  him,  which,  probably,  had 
been  talked  over  during  the  recess.  It  was  a plenary 
session,  for  it  had  been  determined  that  the  council  in 
a body  should  conduct  Jesus  to  the  governor.  It  was 
held  about  5 A.  M.,  ^^when  the  morning  was  come;” 
and  in  the  room,  Gazzith — ‘^they  led  Him  eis  ton  suned- 
rio7i^  into  the  council” — a phrase  which  includes  both 
the  members  and  their  place  of  meeting.  Jesus’  con- 
fession being  enough  without  witnesses,  the  trial  was 
brief.  They  come  to  it  at  once.  They  put  to  Him  the 
same  question  put  before  by  Oaiaphas,  divided,  however? 
now,  by  them,  into  two.  Once  more  we  ask  Thee,  over 
and  above  all  asked  Thee  before,  tell  us,  ‘^Art  Thou  the 
Christ  of  whom  the  prophets  spake,  and  for  whom  we 
have  looked  so  long?” 

To  the  whole  question  Jesus  had  given  a prompt  re- 
sponse, I am.  To  this  half  of  it  He  answered,  “If  I 
tell  you,  you  will  not  believe;”  for  you  have  not  be- 
lieved My  works  or  words.  “If  I ask  you  questions, 
you  will  not  answer  Me,  nor,”  if  convinced,  “let  Me 
go.”  As  judges,  you  have  prejudged  the  case.  As 


'IMK  HOLY  DEATH. 


117 


men,  you  will  not  listen  to  any  argument  I make.  You 
are  not  disciples  seeking  instruction.  But  I repeat, 
^‘apo  ton  nun,  from  now,  on,  the  Son  of  Man,  estai 
katheemenos^  shall  he  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  the 
power  of  God.’’ 

His  judges  instantly  see  that  in  the  phrase.  Son  of 
Man  sitting,  &c.,  the  idea,  Son  of  God,  is  included.  All 
wish  to  hear  out  of  His  own  mouth,  so  all  ask,  su  oun 
■ei  ho  whyos  ton  Theou^  Art  Thou,  therefore,  the 
Son  of  God? 

This  was  the  religious,  as  Art  Thou  the  Christ?  was 
the  political,  side  of  the  case. 

Then  said  He  unto  them,  Te  say  that  I am. 

What  need  we  any  further  witness?  they  all  shouted 
out,  for  we  ourselves  have  heard  of  His  own  mouth. 

The  death  sentence  was  at  once  confirmed — this  time 
by  a formal  vote.  It  was  recorded  by  the  scribes.  It 
was  solemnly  announced  by  the  President.  Then  it  was 
all  written  out,  and  signed  and  sealed,  ready  to  be  hand- 
ed to  Pilate,  as  their  judgment  in  the  case. 

If  the  Koman  court  be  not  held  before  6 P.  M., 
the  case  must  lie  over  during  the  seven  days  of  the 
paschal  feast.  But  they  dared  not  keep  Jesus  so  long  in 
bonds  without  bringing  the  matter  before  Pilate.  All 
Jerusalem,  and  all  Galilee,  would  be  ablaze  with  excite- 
ment, and  no  one  could  tell  the  consequences.  Jesus 
must  be  brought  before  Pilate  at  once.  The  Council 
held  a consultation,  which  could  not  have  been  long. 
But  the  plan  they  adopted  was  most  skillfully  contrived 
and  successfully  carried  out.  They  knew  that  Pilate 


118 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


held  a Jew’s  life  cheap  (Luke  xiii,  1),  that  the  ordinary 
execution  of  a J ewish  criminal  was  of  little  moment, 
and  their  plan  was,  first,  to  ask  Pilate  to  confirm  their 
sentence,  upon  a Jew,  and  order  the  execution  of  Jesus, 
without  an  examination  into  the  merits  of  the  case.  The 
success  of  this  plan  depended  upon  Pilate’s  humor  at 
the  time. 

It  might  fail.  Heresy,  false  prophetism  and  blasphemy 
were  no  offenses  in  Pilate’s  eyes.  Nor  could  it  be  said 
that  Jesus  had  interfered  with  the  state,  or  had  exerted 
other  than  a moral  infiuence.  But  His  foes  could  link  a 
charge  on  the  word,  Christ.  ^^He  is,”  He  says,  ^^Christ  a 
King.  He  disaffects  people  towards  Koine.  He  forbids 
tribute  to  Caesar.”  This  would  be  a serious  charge.  Por 
Pilate  knew  how  odious  this  tribute  was  to  the  Jews. 
This  was  their  second  plan.  They  would  accuse  Jesus 
of  treason  to  Rome.  (Luke  xxiii,  3.)  We  can  now  see 
why  the  council  divided  the  question  which  Caiaphas,  at 
the  first  session,  had  asked  as  a whole.  But  Jesus  might 
repudiate  this  charge.  Then  the  plan  was  to  bring  for- 
ward the  religious  charge  of  blasphemy.  (John  xix,  7.) 
And  if  all  failed,  as  in  fact,  all  did,  then  they  determined 
to  carry  their  point  by  mob-violence  and  personal  threat- 
ening. Pilate  should  have  no  conscience  or  will  except 
to  yield.  Kather  than  fail,  they  would  abandon  their 
cherished  Messianic  hopes,  and  become  vassals  of  Caesar. 
If  Pilate  would  not  otherwise  yield,  they  would  threaten 
him  with  an  accusation,before  Tiberius,  of  failure  to  pun. 
ish  one  guilty  oi  crimen  majestatis,  (John  xix,  12-16.) 

The  news  of  the  arrest,  the  trial,  r>:id  the  sentence, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Ill) 

had  been  rapidly  circulated  among  the  friends  of  the 
council.  If  not  awake,  they  had  been  aroused  out  of 
sleep.  By  the  time  the  second  trial  was  over,  great 
crowds  (Luke  xxiii,  1),  were  on  the  streets,  and  about 
the  doors  of  the  council-hall.  Their  inspiration  came 
from  the  leaders.  To  them  was  the  news  borne  that  the 
death  sentence  was  confirmed.  They  shouted, Jesus  must 
die.”  That  cry  was  re-echoed  into  the  chamber.  It  as- 
sured the  council  of  the  sympathy  of  the  crowd.  It  de- 
termined them  to  take  the  mob  with  them,  and  use  it 
as  a help  to  their  purpose  to  overawe  Pilate. 

Far  differently  sounded  that  cry  in  Judas’  ears.  It 
brought  him  to  his  senses.  It  was  to  him,  alas!  the  knell 
of  death.  ^‘He  saw  what  he  had  done” — but  too  late. 
Smitten  by  remorse,  he  rushed  into  the  council  halL 
To  the  members  engaged  in  their  secret  and  wicked  de- 
liberation, he  was  an  awful  apparition.  His  looks  of 
terror,  his  bitter  cry  of  anguish  and  remorse,  have 
sinned  in  that  I have  betrayed  innocent  blood,”  must 
have  appalled  the  stoutest  heart.  He  brought  with 
him  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver  which  he  hadTeceived  from 
them.  He  offered  it  back  to  them,  who,  with  it,  had 
led  him  on  to  destruction.  He  was  met  with  the  sneer 
of  those  whose  tool  he  had  been.  He  hurled  down  the 
accursed  coin,  ‘fin  the  Temple,”  on  the  floor  before  them,^ 
rushed  out,  into,  and  through,  the  streets  to  a potter’s 

Temple,  may  be  the  name  given  to  the  room.  If  it 
refers  to  the  Temple  proper,  then  he  rushed  out,  from  their  pres- 
ence, to  the  Temple,  and  hurled  it  in.  This  secret  session,  then,, 
was  held  in  the  Temple.  After  it  was  ended,  they  returned  to  the 
council  chamber,  Gazzith,  where,  in  that  case,  Jesus  had  been  de- 
tained. See  Lange,  in  loco.] 


120 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


field,  near  the  city,  and  hanged  himself — the  only  case  of 
suicide  mentioned  in  the  New  Testament. 

Meanwhile,  and  as  speedily  as  possible,  the  council  had 
matured  their  plans.  Jesus  was  again  brought  into  the 
hall.  The  cords  or  chains,  which  had  been  removed 
during  the  trial,  were  now,  by  the  order  of  the  council, 
put  on  Him  (Mark  xv,  1)  more  tightly,  perhaps,  as  it 
was  open  day,  and  He  must  go  through  the  streets. 
Perhaps,  like  Peter  (Acts  xii,  6),  He  was  bound  by  the 
wrists  to  two  soldiers.  Everything  was  ready.  The 
order  was  given  to  start.  It  was  proi^  early,  say  6 A.  M., 
as  the  noise  in  the  room,  followed  by  the  heavy  tramp  of 
men  along  the  corridor  told  the  crowd  that  the  proces- 
sion had  started.  Out  it  came,  priests,  elders,  scribes, 
Sadducees,  in  their  official  robes,  the  most  influential 
body  in  Jerusalem.  Jesus,  in  their  midst,  chained,  and 
guarded  by  the  Temple  police,  and  attended  by  Roman 
soldiers,  was  being  led  forth  to  be  delivered  to  the  Gen- 
tiles. By  such  an  appearance,  so  early,  on  the  day  of  the 
preparation,  they  hoped  to  impress  upon  Pilate  that 
Jesus  was  a great  criminal.’  They  were  joined  by  the 
crowd.  On  they  moved,  in  a northerly  direction,  from 
the  council  chamber.  They  re-cross  the  bridge  over 
the  Tyrophsean,  then  on,  across  ‘^the  open  space  of  the 
Xystus,  with  its  pillars  and  porches,”  on,  to  Port  Anto- 
nia, the  headquarters  of  the  Roman  governor  and  gar- 
rison in  Jerusalem. 

While  the  procession  is  on  the  way,  let  us  look  at 
some  important  questions  suggested  by  the  trials. 

Jesus’  answer,  twice  repeated,  declaring  His  Divine 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


121 

Sonship,  slmts  us  in  to  one  of  two  alternatives. 
We  must  accept  His  divinity,  or  deny  His  veracity. 
If,  in  the  sense  of  absolute  divinity.  He  is  not  the  Son 
of  God,  then  yras  He  guilty  of  an  audacity  of  preten- 
sion and  deceit  unparalleled.  Ho  wilful  deceiver  of  the 
people  can  be  a good  man.  But,  if  not  Divine,  Jesus 
was  base  with  the  degrading  and  detestible  vices  of 
senseless  vanity  and  presumption.  But  nowhere 
in  His  career  is  there  the  slightest  trace  of  any- 
thing of  the  kind.  His  whole  life  has  on  it  the  stamp 
of  absolute  truthfulness.  He  knew  who  He  was,  and 
did  not  speak  differently  from  what  He  knew.  Hence, 
Ilis  word,  with  the  great  majority  of  thinking  men, 
who  have  carefully  studied  His  life,  has  settled  the 
character  of  His  Person  and  mission.  They  have  ac- 
cepted His  salvation,  rejoiced  in  His  conquests,  believed 
in  His  second  coming,  and  bowed  before  Him  as  su- 
premely and  absolutely  Divine. 

This  moment  was  a turning  point  in  the  world’s  his- 
tory, more  decisive,  and  infinitely  more  valuable,  than 
all  the  great  decisive  battles  of  the  world. 

Every  fact  connected  with  these  trials  show^s  that  they 
were  arbitrary,  illegal  and  unfair.  Ho  question  can  be 
raised  as  to  the  competency  of  the  court  to  try  Him,  as 
a Jew.  It  had  lawful  and  exclusive  Jurisdiction  of  ec- 
clesiastical offenses.  And  the  disciples,  who  were  often 
arranged  before  it,  never  raised  the  question  of  com- 
petency, or  denied  its  Jurisdiction.  (Acts  iv,  5-21;  v, 
17-40;  vii,  12-15;  xxiii,  1-10.) 

Its  code  was  a merciful  one.  The  President  must, 


123 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


when  the  accused  was  on  trial,  remind  the  court  of  the 
value  of  life,  and  of  their  own  maxim,  ^^that  it  was  the 
Sanhedrim’s  duty  to  save  life,  not  destroy.”  To  the 
accused  an  advocate,  Baal  Bib,  must  be  assigned.  The 
examination  of  witnesses  must  be  in  the  presence  of 
the  accused.  He  could  not  be  condemned  on  his  own 
confession,  nor  on  the  testimony  of  one  witness.  Trial 
and  sentence  of  death,  during  the  night,  were  forbidden- 
The  verdict  could  not  be  given  in  on  the  day  of  trial, 
nor  on  a feast  day.  One  day,  at  least,  must  intervene 
between  the  giving,  and  the  execution,  of  the  sentence. 
New  evidence  entitled  one  to  a new  hearing,  even  when 
preparations  for  the  execution  had  been  made.  And 
there  is  no  good  reason  to  doubt  that,  usually,  these 
rules  were  regarded. 

But  not  so  now.  The  President  was  both  judge  and 
accuser.  The  accused  was  allowed  no  counsel,  nor  any 
witnesses.  He  was  tried  and  condemned  at  night,  and 
on  His  own  confession,  which  He  was  compelled  to 
give  under  the  adjuration.  And  if  it  b,e  said,  that  ac- 
cording to  the  law  (Dent,  xiii,  l-l),  they  could  not, 
after  that  confession,  do  less  than  condemn  Him  to 
death  as  a blasphemer,  the  answer  is  at  hand.  Con- 
demnation, without  an  investigation  into  the  validity  of 
Jesus’  claim  of  Sonship,  was  clearly  illegal.  But  every 
fact  in  the  case  shows  that  they  met,  not  to  investigate, 
but  to  formally  pronounce  sentence  upon  the  prejudged, 
death-doomed  Man.  Their  motives  in  this,  as  in  every 
act  towards  Him  from  the  first,  were  selfishly  personal 
and  base.  Their  determination  to  get  Him  out  of  the 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


12B 


way  was  formed,  as  we  have  already  seen,  more  than  two 
years  previously.  They  had,  during  this  time,  pursned 
Him  with  relentless  persecution,  had  sought  to  kill 
Him,  had  pronounced  upon  Him  and  His  followers  the 
sentence  of  excommunication.  At  an  informal  meeting 
of  the  council,  held  in  the  preceding  Jan.-Feb.,  it  was 
resolved  that  it  was  expedient  “for  us’’ — i.  e.,  the  mem- 
bers, and  this  shows  the  motive — ^^that  One  die  for  the 
people.”  They,  to  carry  out  this  purpose,  met  on  the 
Tuesday  of  this,  the  Passion  week,  made,  then,  the 
bargain  with  J udas,  and  every  preparation,  also,  to  arrest, 
try,  and  condemn  the  Man.  All  the  facts  in  the  case 
shut  one  in  to  this  conclusion:  the  death  of  Jesus  was 
the  inevitable  result  of  the  conflict  between  Him  and 
the  theocratic  authorities,  and  was  a judicial  murder. 

It  was  so  regarded  by  His  followers.  They  knew 
that  He  had  prayed  for  His  foes,  because  they  knew  not 
what  they  did.  They  publicly  declared  to  the  people 
that  they  (His  ibllowers),  knew  that  through  ignorance 
they  (the  people)  did  it,  as  did  also  their  rulers.  (Acts 
iii,  17;  Cor.  ii,  8.)  But  this  did  not  blind  them  to  the 
fact  that  it  was  done  wilfully.  The  evidences  of  Jesus' 
Sonship  were  abundant,  accessible,  well-known.  Bui 
to  it  they  had  wilfully  closed  their  eyes.  Hence,  they 
would  not  see  either  His  spiritual  glory  or  divinity. 
The  cumulative  evidence  in  support  of  these  facts  the 
rather  increased  their  rage.  In  their  wilful  blindness 
they  murdered  their  King.  Their  guilt.  His  followers 
declared,  was  portentous:  ^‘Him  ye  have  taken,  and 

by  wicked  hands  have  slain;”  ^^Ye  desired  a murderer. 


124 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


and  killed  tlie  Prince  of  life;”  ^‘They  found  no  cause 
of  death  in  Him,  yet  desired  they  Pilate  that  He  should 
be  slain.”  And  though  Caiaphas  had  unconsciously 
prophesied  that  Jesus  should  die  for  that  nation,  though 
the  blood  shed  by  Israel  will  yet  be  the  salvation  of 
Israel,  as  it  is  now  the  basis  of  hope  and  theme  of  re- 
joicing for  the  world,  yet  all  this  could  not  prevent  the 
righteous  judgment  upon  Israel  for  the  sin^  Under 
the  awful  imprecation,  ^^His  blood  be  upon  us  and 
upon  our  children,”  which  they  invoked  upon  them- 
selves, that  people  remain  to  this  day. 

Section  YL 

JESUS  TAKEH  TO  PILATE. 

Matt,  xxvii,  2, 11-14 ; Mark  xv,  2-5 ; Luke  xxiii,  1-5 ; John  xviii,  28-38. 

And  they,  the  chief  priests,  elders,  scribes,  and  the 
whole  council,  bound  Jesus.  And  when  they  had 
bound  Him,  the  whole  multitude  of  them  arose,  and  led 
Him  away  from  Caiaphas  unto  the  judgment-hall,  and 
delivered  Him  to  Pontius  Pilate,  the  governor.  And 
it  was  early.  And  they,  themselves,  went  not  into  the 
judgment-hall,  lest  they  should  be  defiled,  but  that  they 
might  eat  the  passover. 

Pilate  then  went  out  unto  them. 

And  Jesus  stood  before  the  governor. 

Pilate’s  first  sight  of  Jesus.]  And  Pilate  said.  What 
accusation  bring  ye  against  this  Man? 

They  answered  and  said  unto  him.  If  He  were  not  a 
malefactor,  we  would  not  have  delivered  Him  unto 
thee. 

Then  said  Pilate  unto  them.  Take  ye  Him,  and  judge 
Him  according  to  your  law. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


125 


The  Jews,  therefore,  said  unto  him.  It  is  not  lawful 
for  us  to  put  any  man  to  death:  that  the  saying  of  Je- 
sus might  be  fulfilled,  which  He  spake,  signifying  what 
death  He  should  die. 

The  first  charges  of  the  council.  Je-  ) And  they 
sus’ fir sf  public  examination  before  Pilate.  J began  to  ac- 
cuse Him,  saying.  We  found  this  fellow  perverting  the 
nation,  and  forbidding  to  give  tribute  to  Osesar,  saying 
that  He  Himself  is  Christ,  a King. 

And  the  governor,  Pilate,  asked  Him,  saying,  Art 
Thou  the  King  of  the  Jews? 

And  Jesus  answering,  said  unto  him.  Thou  sayest  it. 

Pilate  goes  into  the  Judgment-hall,  \ Then  Pilate 
calls  Jesus  in,  talks  with  Him  privately.  J entered  into 
the  Judgment-hall,  and  called  Jesus  and  said  unto  Him, 
Art  Thou  the  King  of  the  Jews? 

Jesus  answered  him,  Sayest  thou  this  thing  of  thy- 
self, or  did  others  tell  it  thee  of  Me? 

Pilate  answered.  Am  I a Jew?  Thine  own  nation 
and  the  chief  priests  have  delivered  Thee  unto  me: 
what  hast  Thou  done? 

Jesus  answered.  My  Kingdom  is  not  of  this  world: 
If  My  Kingdom  were  of  this  world,  then  would  My 
servants  fight  that  I should  not  be  delivered  unto  the 
Jews:  but  now  is  My  Kingdom  not  from  hence. 

Pilate,  therefore,  said  unto  Him,  Art  Thou  a King 
then? 

Jesus  answered.  Thou  sayest  that  I am  a King.  To 
this  end  was  I born,  and  for  this  cause  came  I into  the 
world,  that  I should  bear  witness  unto  the  truth.  Ev- 
ery one  that  is  of  the  truth,  heareth  My  voice. 

Pilate  saith  unto  Him,  What  is  truth? 

Pilate  declares  to  the  crowd  his  ) And  when  he  had 
conviction  that  Jesus  is  innocent.  J said  this,  he  went 
out  again  unto  the  Jews,  and  saith  unto  them,  to  the  chief 


126 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


priests  and  to  tlie  people,  I find  no  fault  in  Him,  this 
Man,  at  all. 

Further  charges.  Jesus,  who  had  been  brought  ) And 
out  of  the  hall  to  face  His  accusers,  is  silent,  j the 
chief  priests  and  elders  accused  Him  of  many  things. 
And  when  He  was  accused  of  them.  He  answered  noth- 
ing. 

Then  said  Pilate  unto  Him,  ashed  Him  again,  saying, 
Answerest  Thou  nothing?  Hearest  Thou  not,  behold, 
how  many  things  they  witness  against  Thee? 

But  Jesus  answered  him  nothing — to  never  a word — 
insomuch  that  the  governor,  Pilate,  marvelled  greatly. 

And  they  were  the  more  fierce,  saying,  He  stirreth 
up  the  people,  teaching  throughout  all  Jewry,  begin- 
ning from  Galilee  to  this  place. 

We  left  the  procession  on  its  way.  The  farther  it 
advanced,  the  larger  grew  the  crowd,  and  more  tumult- 
uous. At  last  it  reached  the  headquarters  of  the 
Boman  governor.  This,  as  Herod  was  then  in  the  city, 
and  occupied,  most  probably,  the  Herodian  palace,  was 
the  citidal  Antonia.  Tradition,  at  least,  makes  this 
citidal  the  starting  point  of  the  ma  Dolorosa, 

This  massive  and  magnificent  Fort  was  one  of  the 
wonders  of  the  city.  Built  by  John  Hyrcanus,  it  was 
enlarged  and  strengthened  by  Herod  the  Great,  and 
named,  by  him,  Antonia,  after  Mark  Antony.  It  stood 
on  the  same  broad  platform  of  solid  rock  on  which  the 
Temple  stood.  Its  walls  proclaimed  its  fortress  strength. 
As  re-constructed,  they  adjoined  the  Temple  at  its 
north-west  end,  and  on  that  side  only  was  it  accessible. 
Its  halls  seemed  like  streets,  its  suites  of  rooms  like 
dwellings.  Its  face-stones  were  polished.  Its  four 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


127 


towers,  which  gave  it  the  appearance  of  a castle,  com- 
manded a view  of  the  entire  city.  From  one  of  them 
the  soldiers  could  look  down  on  the  crowds  in  the  Tem- 
ple courts,  into  which  its  gates  opened.  The  Fort  could 
hold  many  hundred  troops,  and  was  continually  garri- 
soned by  a Roman  cohort,  or  legion. 

Judea  being  a part  of  the  presidency  of  Syria,  was 
ruled  by  a procurator.  But  as  it  was  an  imperial,  and 
not  a consular  province,  he  had  the  power  of  life  and 
death,  and  the  title  of  governor.  His  official  residence 
was  Caesarea.  But  he  was  required  to  be  present  in 
Jerusalem  at  the  great  feasts,  there,  to  display  the  pomp 
of  Roman  majesty,  attend  to  the  revenues  of  the  impe- 
rial treasury,  administer  Justice  and  decide  legal  ques- 
tions, and  to  quell  any  attempt  at  insurrection  which 
the  excited  crowds,  in  their  desire  for  national  indepen- 
dence, might  attempt.  When  there,  his  headquarters, 
if  not  in  Herod’s  palace,  were  in  Fort  Antonia.  And 
there  was  he  now. 

The  governor,  at  this  time,  was  Pontius — this  name 
points  to  a Samnite  origin — Pilate,  a knight  of  the  old 
and  influential  Pontii  family,  and  the  sixth  Roman 
governor  of  Judea.  His  procuratorship  extended  from 
A.  D.  26  to  A.  D.  36,  and  covered  the  period  of  Jesus’ 
ministry.  Renan  calls  him  an  able  administrator.  But 
he  was  wanting  in  political  tact.  He  softened  not  the 
asperities  of  foreign  rule.  His  utter  disregard  of  the 
Jews’  dispositions  and  religious  convictions,  and  arbi- 
trary rule,  brought  on  frequent  tumults,  which  he  put 
down  with  relentless  severity.  Once  he  sent  the  sol- 


128 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


diery  into  the  city  with  the  Koman  eagles.  At  another 
time  he  hnng  some  golden  shields,  on  which  the  Em- 
peror’s name,  Tiberius,  was  engraved,  on  the  outer 
walls  of  Antonia.  Both  times  was  he  compelled  to 
yield,  from  fear  of  a terrible  tumult.  His  cruelty  was 
excessive.  His  tortures,  rapines,  and  killing  of  people 
were  notorious.  He  mingled  the  blood  of  certain  wor- 
shippers with  their  sacrifices.  His  deep  hatred,  and 
supreme  contempt,  for  the  Jews  were  reciprocated.  He 
was  a thorough  typical  Roman,  not  of  the  antique,  but 
of  the  voluptuous,  age.  He  was  ambitious,  shrewd,  world- 
ly-wise, selfish,  and  cowardly.  As  a governor,  he  was 
stern,  but  not  relentless,  shed  blood  freely,  but  was  not 
wantonly  cruel.  The  welfare  of  the  people  were  less  to 
him  than  his  own  personal  interests.  As  a judge,  he  had 
a Roman  sense  of  justice,  and  would  act  justly,  if  it  cost 
him  nothing.  But  while  able  to  see  the  right,  he  had 
not  the  moral  strength  to  carry  it  out,  and  would  sacri- 
fice truth  and  slay  the  innocent  to  avert  a loss,  or  ac- 
quire a gain. 

It  was  his  lot  to  be  governor  of  J udea  at  this  time. 
And  his  perplexity  and  distress  in  having  this  case  to 
deal  with,  apparent  throughout  the  trial,  comes  out 
strongly  in  his  question,  ^^What  shall  I do  with  Jesus, 
that  is  called  Christ?”  His  feelings  towards  the  Jews, 
who  had  caused  him  constant  trouble,  his  knowledge  of 
the  fact,  ‘^that  for  envy  they  had  delivered  Him,”  the 
impression  Jesus’  presence  and  bearing  made  upon  him, 
the  awe  awakened  by  the  saying,  ‘^Son  of  God,”  the 
fear  aroused  by  the  warning  and  dream  of  his  wife,  and 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


129 


his  Roman  sense  of  justice,  all  combined  to  lead  him  to 
take  a favorable  view  of  Jesus’  case.  He  really  wished 
— if  he  could  do  so  without  compromising  himself — to 
save  Him.  He  used  means  which  he  hoped  would 
accomplish  that  end.  Six  times  he  declared  Him  inno- 
cent. Seven  times  he  pleaded  for  His  release.  And 
he  was  determined,  if  he  could  not  save  Him,  to  clear 
himself  from  all  responsibility  of  His  death.  But  he 
lacked  the  moral  firmness  to  do  what  his  sense  of  jus- 
tice and  feeling  of  humanity  told  him  was  right.  Hence 
he  resorted  to  expedients  which  the  Jews  tore  into 
shreds.  Their  threat  of  an  appeal  to  Caesar  made  him 
turn  pale.  His  favor  was  life.  The  loss  of  it  was  the 
most  frightful  of  calamities.  And  rather  than  brave 
this,  he,  in  the  end,  gave  up  Him  whom  he  would  have  set 
free,  to  the  popular  clamor  of  a people  whom  he  ruled, 
but  both  hated  and  feared.  But  he  was  less  guilty  than 
they.  (John  xix,  11.)  He  treated  Jesus  with  more 
consideration  than  other  governors  treated  the  apostles. 
He  excites  our  sympathy.  We  condemn,  but  we  pity. 
The  very  thing  he  dreaded,  and  sacrificed  J esus  to  avert, 
came  upon  him.  Accused  of  false  witness  and  murder, 
he  was,  by  Yitellius,  governor  of  Syria,  deposed,  and 
sent  to  Rome,  to  answer  the  charge.  He  was  banished 
to  Germany.  His  last  days  were  miserable.  And  like 
Judas,  the  other  great  accomplice  in  the  crime  of  the 
Jews,  he  there  ended  his  life  by  suicide — a sad  and 
terrible  instance  of  a man,  whom  the  fear  of  endangered 
self-interest  drove,  not  only  to  an  act  against  the  delib- 
erate convictions  of  judgment  and  conscience,  but  fur- 


130 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ther,  to  an  act  of  the  utmost  cruelty  and  injustice,  even 
after  those  convictions  had  been  deepened  by  warnings 
which  were  strengthened  by  a presentiment. 

This  is  the  man  before  whom  Jesus  was  brought  a 
prisoner  at  this  early  hour,  about  6 A.  M.,  on  this,  the 
Friday  of  the  ages,  April  7th,  A.  D.  30.  He  was  led 
eis  to  jpTetOTion.  This  was  the  name  given,  in  Rome, 
to  the  place  where  the  praetor  sat  to  administer  justice, 
in  the  field,  to  the  tent  of  the  commander,  in  the  prov- 
inces, to  the  official  residence  of  the  procurator.  Though 
translated  ^^Pretorium”  (Mark  xv,  16),  ^^judgment  hall” 
(John  xviii,  28,  33;  xix,  9),  and  ‘^common  hall”  (Matt, 
xxvii,  27),  it,  in  these  places,  designates,  and  in  the 
margin  of  Matt,  xxvii,  27,  is  translated,  “governor’s 
house.”  This  was  Fort  Antonia.  To  it  the  guard-house 
of  the  garrison,  and  the  state  prison  were  adjoined. 
(Acts  xxiii,  35.)  There,  Roman  justice  was  adminis- 
tered, in  Jerusalem.  In  front  of  it  was  an  open  court, 
called,  in  the  Hebrew  or  Chaldee,  Gabbatha,  because  of 
its  elevation,  and  LitTirostratorh  (E.  Y.,  “Pavement”), 
because  it  was  paved  with  tesellated  stone.  This  Pave- 
ment was  between  the  Fort  and  Temple,  and  was  the 
highest  part  of  the  Temple  area  (Jos.  Wars.^  18,  32). 
On  it  the  movable  Beema  was  placed.  This,  an  eleva- 
ted seat,  on  a richly  decorated  platform,  was  the  judg- 
ment seat  on  which  Pilate  sat  when  he  gave  an  official 
decision,  which,  in  criminal  cases,  must  be  always  pro- 
nounced in  the  presence  of  the  crowd,  and  of  the  ac- 
cused. On  this  Pavement  the  council  and  mob  stood 
during  the  trial.  There,  Jesus  was  publicly  examined, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


131 


scourged,  condemned,  and  thence  He  started  on  His 
march  to  death. 

It  was  within  a few  hours  of  a Sabbath  that  had 
been,  for  centuries,  associated  with,  and  thought  a part 
of,  the  ‘-^Passover;”  and  was  called  “a  high  day.”  The 
Council,  who  thought  Jesus,  though  a Jew,  so  defiled 
already  that  His  going  into  the  Pretorium  could  not  de- 
file Him  more,  could  not,  themselves,  enter  into  the 
Gentile’s  house — the  most  hateful  to  them — lest  they, 
by  contact  with  leaven,  might  be  made  ceremonially  un- 
clean. 

Word  was  sent  in,  by  a Roman  officer,  to  Pilate,  al- 
ready aroused,  perhaps,  by  the  gathering  of  so  large  a 
crowd.  Going  out,  he  saw  the  crowd  and  the  Council, 
conspicuous  among  whom  was  Caiaphas,  whoni  he 
knew,  and  Jesus,  guarded  by  the  soldiers,  in  front. 
This  was  his  first  sight  of  Jesus.  The  chains,  and  early 
hour,  were  intimations  that  He  was  a daring  criminal, 
who  ought,  at  once,  to  die.  Pilate  knew  not  His  name, 
nor  the  alleged  crime.  But  as  He  stood  there  in  quiet 
dignity  before  the  representative  of  the  world-power. 
He  was  so  unlike  all  criminals  whom  he  had  seen, 
there  was  in  His  face  such  an  evident  stamp  of  inno- 
cence, that  in  surprise,  he  asked,  ^What  accusation 
bring  ye  against  this  Man?” 

Blasphemy  of  Jehovah,  they  knew,  was  no  crime  in 
Roman  eyes.  The  fact  that  this  was  the  offense  for 
which  He  was  condemned,  and  their  own  motives,  they 
must  conceal  from  Pilate.  To  effect  this,  they  bring 
forward  their  first  plan,  ratification,  without  a hearing. 


132 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


of  their  proceedings.  In  the  hope  that  he,  without  in- 
vestigation, would  accept  their  decision,  and  order  the 
execution  of  their  sentence,  they  replied,  ‘VHis  being 
brought  before  you  is  proof  of  Ris  guilt,  Rf  Pie  were 
not  a malefactor,  we  would  not  have  delivered  Him  up 
unto  thee.”’ 

But  Pilate  was  in  no  mood  to  act  upon  such  a vague 
generality.  He  seems  to  have  suspected  who  it  was  who 
stood  before  him.  Of  His  wonderful  life  and  career,  the 
topic  of  conversation  everywhere,  he  had  heard  much. 
His  triumphal  entry  into  the  city,  a few  days  before, 
had  made  a great  stir.  The  order  for  the  guard  to 
attend  His  arrest  had  come  from  his  office.  “He  knew 
that  the  Jews  had  delivered  Him  for  envy.”  He  read 
through  their  designs,  and  caught  the  spirit  of  their 
words  at  once.  “Malefactor,  is  He!  Judges,  are  you! 
Executioner,  am  I!  Act  within  the  limits  of  your  ca- 
pacity. Take  Him  and  judge,  i,  ^.,  punish.  Him  accord- 
ing to  your  law.” 

Was  this  a permission  to  inflict  tne  death-penalty? 
Then,  had  they  acted,  Jesus  must  have  died  by  stoning. 
But  they  refused  this  offer.  And  thus,  by  their  own 
act,  they  accomplished  His  prediction.  “It  is  not,” 
they  shout  out,  “lawful  for  us  to  put  any  man  to  death, 
that  the  saying  of  Jesus  might  be  fulfilled,  which  He 
spake,  signifying  what  death  He  should  die.”  (Matt,  xx, 
19,  20;  John  xii,  32,  33.) 

The  first  plan  had  failed.  They  must  come  down 
from  their  lofty  pretensions.  They  must  submit  their 
proceedings  and  decision  to  Pilate’s,  a heathen’s,  jiidg- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


133 


ment.  Profoundly  mortifying,  this,  to  personal,  na- 
tional, theocratic  pride!  But  to  carry  their  point,  they 
accept  even  this  humiliation.  When  they  sought, while  in 
session,  to  raise  the  charge  of  blasphemy,  they  had  asked 
Jesus,  ^^Art  Thou  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  Grod?”  Out  of 
His  answer,  they  had  formulated  the  political  charge  of 
^reason.  And  this,  which  was  the  second  part  of  their 
plan,  they  now  bring  forward.  ^^^He  says  He  is,’  they 
say  to  Pilate,  ‘Christ,  a King.’  He  is  weakening  the 
allegiance  of  the  people  to  Rome.’”  The  two  specihca- 
tions  were,  (a)  ‘"He  forbids  to  give  tribute  to  Csesar,  and 
(b)  He  calls  Himself  Christ,  a King.” 

The  charge,  and  the  two  first  counts  under  it,  were 
absolutely  false.  J esus  had  never  excited  a rising  of 
the  people,  nor  sought  to  loosen  their  allegiance  to 
Rome.  “Render  unto  Caesar  the  things  that  are  Cae- 
sar’s,” was  His  word.  And  this  word  has  become  a law 
of  the  nations.  The  second  count  was,  they  knew,  false  in 
the  political  meaning  which  they  gave  to  the  word.  King. 

This  accusation  startled  Pilate.  How  began  that 
distraction  of  conflicting  feelings  which  continued  to 
the  end.  He  was  afraid  of  ofiending  the  Jews,  who, 
already  had  grounds  of  complaint  against  him.  He 
dared  not  be  indifferent  to  an  offense  against  Tiberius. 
He  doubted  the  truth  of  the  charge.  He  ordered  Je- 
sus before  him,  and  began  his  flrst  public  examination. 
One  question  only  was  asked,  “Art  Thou  the  King  of 
the  J ews  ?” 

“Thou  sayest  it,”  was  the  strongly  affirmative  reply, 
spoken  in  conscious  truth  and  dignity. 


134 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


The  “yes”  greatly  disturbed  Pilate.  He  had,  evidently, 
expected  a prompt  denial.  He,  now,  for  the  first 
time,  met  a living  conscience,  and  he  knew  not  how  to 
deal  with  it.  He  was  confronted  with  a power  of  which 
he  had  never  heard,  and  he  knew  not  how  to  meet  its 
force.  He  was  afraid  to  interrogate  Him  publicly, 
and  asked  Him,  afterwards,  but  one  question  before  the 
crowd.  In  private,  he  put  the  question  a second  time. 
And  this  shows  that  he  was  familiar  with  the  Jewish 
expectations,  and  had  misgivings  about  Jesus  being 
really  the  long-expected  Messiah  and  King. 

Ordering  the  soldiers  to  bring  Him  in,  he  left  the 
Pavement  and  entered  into  the  Pretorium.  There,  in 
the  presence  of  the  soldiers,  he  asked  Him  again,  “Art 
Thou  the  King  of  the  Jews?” 

“Sayest  thou,”  Jesus  replied,  “this  thing  of  thyself” 
— i.  ^.,  does  it  spring  out  of  a conscious  desire  to  know 
who  I really  am? — “or  did  others  tell  it  thee  of  Me?” 
— L ^.,  are  you  merely  repeating  the  accusation  which 
you  heard  outside?  Are  you  an  inquirer?  or  are  you  an 
accuser,  or  are  you  the  judge? 

Pilate  was  nettled.  He  gave  a contemptuous  reply, 
“Am  I,”  in  thought,  or  action,  “a  Jew?  Thine  own  na- 
tion, and  the  chief  priests,  have  delivered  Thee  unto 
me.  What  hast  Thou  done?” 

In  answer,  Jesus,  in  Kingly  style  and  tone,  thrice 
testifies  before  this  world-power,  as  to  His  royal  state. 
“I  have  a Kingdom.  It  is  not  from  this  world  in  its 
origin,  nor  of  it  in  the  principle  of  its  growth.  If  it 
were,  My  servants  would  fight  that  I should  not  be  de- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


135 


livered  to  the  Jews.  Nun  (emphatic),  now,  as  to  time, 
My  Kingdom  is  not  enteuthen  (an  adverbial  termina- 
tion, describing  locality.  Matt,  xvii,  20;  Luke  iv,  9,  as 
well  as  cause,  Jas.  iv,  1),  from  hence.’’  And  in  these 
great  statements  Pilate  was  taught,  (a)  that  there  is  an- 
other world,  spiritual  and  divine,  from  which  Jesus’ 
Kingdom  came;  (b)  that  this  Kingdom  is  spiritual, 
and  (c),  that  it  will  be  political  and  earthly,  in  form,  hy- 
and-by — a fact  strongly  intimated  in  the  emphatic  nu7i. 
Their  force  Pilate  could  not  grasp,  but  the  meaning 
of  those  words,  he  saw:  Jesus  was  not  interfering  with 
the  Emperor’s  rule.  Curious,  interested  more  than  he 
M^as  willing  to  admit,  he  asked,  oim,  then,  thus, 

in  this  sense,  a King  you  are,  of  a Kingdom  not  of 
this  world,  at  the  present  time?” 

^‘Thou  sayest” — i,  e.,  it  is  as  you  put  it — ^^a  King  I 
am.”  ‘^In  Me  the  Kingly  office  and  Person  are  One.” 
‘^To  this  end  was  I born.”  ‘^And  for  this  cause  came  I 
into  the  world,  that  I should  bear  witness  to  the  truth.” 
It  is  objective  and  one,  and  comes  from  above,  from  a 
Person,  God,  and  through  a Person,  Myself,  sent  from 
Him.  My  Kingdom  is  founded  on,  grows  by,  is  the 
Kingdom  of,  truth,  which  is  the  sceptre  of  its  rule,  and 
the  weapon  of  its  conquests.  “^Every  one  that  is  of  the 
truth” — i,  ^.,  has  the  proper  subjective  condition  to 
receive  objective  truth  when  made  known — ^ffieareth 
My  voice.’  If  you  hear  it,  you  will  know  the  truth, 
and  be  free.’”  Thus  would  Jesus,  by  speaking  to  His 
heart  and  conscience,  attract  Pilate,  that  he  might  be 
saved,  to  Himself.  And  eternity,  alone,  can  disclose 


136 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


how  near  he  was,  at  that  moment,  to  the  Kingdom  of 
God. 

But  he  would  not  accept  the  salvation  now  within  his 
reach.  To  banish  all  awakenino;  thouo:hts,  he  turned 
the  conversation,  ‘‘What,’’  in  a skeptical  tone,  he  asked, 
“is  truth?”  Have  You  found  what  philosophers,  with 
all  their  searching,  have  failed  to  discover?  Fearful, 
however,  lest  conscience  should  get  another  thrust,  he, 
before  Jesus  could  answer,  hastened  out  of  the  room, 
and  went  to  the  Pavement,  and — to  quiet  conscience — 
said  to  council  and  crowd,  “I  find  no  fault  in  this  Man 
at  all.” 

Pilate,  through  fear  of  offending  the  Jews,  had  not, 
as  he  should  have  done,  dismissed  the  case,  at  once. 
The  council  promptly  took  advantage  of  this  fact,  and  a 
scene  of  wild  outcries  and  confusion  ensued.  The  looks, 
and  “accusations  of  many  things,”  told  Pilate,  plainly, 
that  he  had  to  deal  with  fierce  and  determined  priests 
and  elders.  They  would  carry  their  point.  It  was, 
with  them,  a matter  of  life  and  death.  Pilate,  in  his 
perplexity,  turned  to  Jesus,  whom  he  had  ordered  out 
of  the  Pretorium,  to  face  His  accusers,  and  who  had 
maintained  an  unbroken  silence:  “Do  you  not  hear,” 

he  said,  “how  many  things  they  witness  against  you? 
Have  you  nothing  to  answer?” 

Jesus,  who  alone  was  calm,  had  twice  told  Pilate  who 
He  was.  And  now  to  the  cries  of  the  crowd,  and  ques- 
tions of  Pilate,  as  afterwards,  to  the  accusations  of  the 
priests,  the  clamor  of  the  mob,  the  jests  of  Herod,  and 
the  mockery  of  the  soldiers,  He  gave,  as  His  answer,  a 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


137 


silence  dignified  and  expressive.  Its  majesty  filled  Pi- 
late with  amazement.  ^^He  marvelled  greatly.”  Con- 
vinced that  Jesus  was  no  rival  of  Csesar,  he  again  de- 
clares the  accusation  unfounded.  All  this  made  them 
^‘the  more  fierce.”  ^^He  is  an  agitator,”  they  shout 
out.  He  stirs  up  the  people  everywhere,  aroTiomenos^ 
beginning — i,  ^.,  having  the  starting  point — in  Galilee. 
Under  His  teaching  the  movement  has  spread  through- 
out J udea,  heos  lioode^  even  to  this  city — as  the  Palm 
Day  procession  proves.  Pilate,  powerless  to  stop  the 
storm,  resorted  to  the  tricks  of  the  politician.  !Now  he 
tried  to  put  the  responsibility  on  Herod.  Then  he 
tried  to  get  the  Jews  to  ask  for  Jesus’  release.  This 
paltry  policy  failed.  Instead  of  catching,  he  was  caught. 
In  degrading  the  dignity  of  the  judge,  he  violated  the 
majesty  of  the  law,  and  infiicted  upon  justice,  and  upon 
himself,  an  irreparable  injury. 

Section  YII. 

PILATE’S  FIRST  EZPEDIEHT.  ' 

He  sends  Jesus  to  Herod, 

Luke  xxiii,  6-12. 

When  Pilate  heard  of  Galilee,  he  asked  whether  the 
Man  were  a Galilean.  And  as  soon  as  he  knew  that 
He  belonged  to  Herod’s  jurisdiction,  he  sent  Him  to 
Herod,  who  was  at  Jerusalem  at  that  time. 

And  when  Herod  saw  Jesus  he  was  exceedingly  glad: 
for  he  was  desirous  to  see  Him  of  a long  season,  because 
he  had  heard  many  things  of  Him ; and  he  hoped  to 
have  seen  some  miracle  done  by  Him. 

Then  he  questioned  with  Him  in  many  words. 

But  He  answered  him  nothing. 


138 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


And  the  chief  priests  and  scribes  stood  and  vehe- 
mently accused  Him. 

Third  personal  indignity.  ) And  Herod  with  his 
The  first  from  the  Gentiles.  J men  of  war  set  Him  at 
nought,  and  mocked  Him,  and  arrayed  Him  in  a gor- 
geous robe,  and  sent  Him  to  Pilate. 

And  the  same  day  Pilate  and  Herod  were  made 
friends  together:  for  before  they  were  at  enmity  be- 
tween themselves. 

Jesus  must  stand  before  both  the  Judiaco-political, 
as  well  as  the  Judiaco-ecclesiastical,  authorities.  Such 
was  the  will  of  God.  And  it  was  carried  out  by  the  free 
agency  of  man.  Knowing  Pilate’s  hatred  of  Herod, 
and  of  the  Galileans  the  Jews,  to  agitate  him  the 
more,  and  to  excite  him  against  Jesus,  mentioned  Gali- 
lee as  the  scene,  with  Judea,  of  Jesus’  agitations.  Their 
purpose  failed.  “Is  this  Man,”  he  asked,  “a  Galilean?” 
“He  is,”  they  answered.  Then  He  belongs  to  Herod’s 
jurisdiction.  He  was  then  in  the  city.  And  Pilate 
determined  to  send  Him  to  him  at  once. 

This  was  agreeable  to  Roman  usage.  (Acts  xxv,  3,  4.) 
This  might  relieve  him  of  a troublesome  case.  It  may  be, 
that  he  hoped  that,  should  Jesus  be  sent  back,  it  might 
be  with  either  a favorable  opinion  from  Herod  of  Him, 
at  least,  with  some  light  upon  the  case  so  increasingly 
interesting,  and  obscure.  At  any  rate,  by  this  graceful 
act  of  courtesy,  in  sending  one  of  his  own  province  to 
him,  he  might  open  the  way  for  a reconciliation  between 
themselves.  The  enmity  had  been  caused  by  his  inter- 
ference, perhaps,  with  Herod’s  jurisdiction — perhaps 
the  hewing  down  of  the  Galileans  in  the  Temple.  (Luke 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


139 


xiii,  1.)  This  act,  he  hoped,  would  be  accepted  as  an 
apology — the  only  object  gained  by  this  effort  to  re- 
lieve himself  of  the  guilt  of  the  murder  of  the  guiltless. 
But  it  involved  another  in  the  same  guilt.  (Acts  iv, 
27.)  Having  ordered  the  council  to  appear  as  accu- 
sers, before  Herod,  and  the  soldiers  to  take  Jesus  to 
him.  He  was  led  thither,  probably  before  6 A.  M. 

Fort  Antonia  joined  the  Temple  on  Mount  Moriah. 
Exactly  opposite  to  it,  at  some  distance  from  it,  to  the 
south-west  of  the  Temple  hill,  and  in  the  upper  city, 
and  immediately  adjoining  the  old  w^all,  stood  the 
Asmonean  palace.  It  faced  eastward.  It  crowned  * 
Mount  Zion,  the  western,  and  most  elevated,  hill  of 
Jerusalem — a very  fine  view  of  which  was  obtained 
from  its  open  courts.  This  great  and  gorgeous  structure 
was  one  of  the  many  splendid  monuments  of  taste  and 
magnificence  with  which  Herod,  the  Great,  adorned 
Jerusalem.  It  was  built  on  the  occasion  of  his  mar- 
riage with  the  daughter  of  a priest.  Countless  kinds 
of  stones  were  used  in  its  construction.  It  was  adorned 
with  sculptured  porticoes,  and  columns  of  many  colored 
marbles.  Its  fioors  were  paved  with  rich  mosaics.  The 
roof  amazed  by  its  length,  its  breadth,  its  beauty  of 
adornment.  It  seemed,  when  the  sun  shone  on  it,  like 
a thing  illuminated.  The  front  grounds  were  enriched 
with  green  promenades,  which  were  shaded  by  trees, 
and  bordered  by  canals  and  lakelets  of  fresh  water.  In 
every  direction  the  eye  rested  on  renowned  statutes,  and 
other  works  of  art,  and  on  fountains  of  elaborate  work- 
manship and  costly  character.  The  rooms  were  finished 


140 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


in  the  highest  style  of  art.  The  great  dining-hall  could 
easily  accommodate  300  guests.  The  plate  was  of  solid 
gold,  rich  in  chasing.  Whatever  was  rare  and  costly, 
was  found  in  the  palace.  It,  at  the  same  time,  was  so 
strong,  and  so  strongly  fortified,  that  it  was  the  citadal 
of  the  upper  city — called  (Acts  xxii),  the  castle. 

To  that  palace,  where  the  many  tragedies  of  the 
Herodian  family  were  enacted,  Jesus  was  now  led.  To 
reach  it.  He  was  again  marched  over  the  massive  cause^ 
way  that  spanned  the  Tyrophsean  valley  between  Mount 
Moriah  and  Mount  Zion,  then  along  the  streets  to  the 
great  gate,  opening  into  the  palace  grounds;  then  west- 
ward along  the  lower  level  terrace  to  the  fiight  of  steps 
— those  from  which  Paul,  afterwards,  addressed  an  an- 
gry crowd  (Acts  xxii,  34;  xxiii — then  up  that  long 
fiight,  from  the  top  of  which  the  stately  structure  was 
easily  reached.  Then  through  the  beautiful  grounds, 
and  along  the  lofty  corridors  was  He  led  into,  perhaps, 
one  of  the  two  colossal  wings,  which,  as  a memorial  of 
Herod’s  connection  with  Osesar  and  Agrippa,  were 
named,  one  after  each — the  first  and  only  time  Jesus 
ever  trod  an  earthly  palace’s  fioor. 

The  man  before  whom  He  now  stood  a prisoner,  was 
Herod  Antipas,  son  of  Herod  the  Great,  and  tetrarch  of 
Galilee.  Inheriting  the  family  passion  for  building 
cities,  he  had  founded  one  on  the  shore  Of  the  sea  of 
Galilee,  which  he  named  Tiberias,  in  honor  of  the  Em- 
peror, and  made  it  the  capital  of  his  province.  An 
Idumean  J ew,  he  had  now  come — as  his  custom  was — 
to  Jerusalem  to  the  feast,  ostensibly  to  honor  the  law,. 


141 


THE  B.dtY  DEATH. 

ally  to  please  himself.  He  had  brought  with  him 
his  petty  court,  and  body-guards — the  only  soldiers 
allowed  him  in  Pilate’s  jurisdiction.  The  glimpses 
given  of  him  in  the  gospels  show  a thoroughly  bad 
man.  The  dark  picture  has  not  a single  relieving  fea- 
ture. He  was  a monstrous  mixture  of  hateful  oppo- 
sites. He  was  a despot,  capricious,  cruel  and  cunning,  a 
man  unscrupulous,  sensual  and  superstitious.  His  levity 
was  as  conspicuous  as  his  licentiousness.  The  dancing 
of  Herod’s  daughter  delighted  him  so  much  that  he 
offered  her  half  of  his  kingdom.  At  her  request,  which 
was  that  of  her  mother  whom  he  had  unlawfully  mar- 
ried, he  killed  John  Baptist,  the  man  who  had,  to  his 
face,  denounced  the  incestuous  connection. 

When  the  news  of  Jesus’  mighty  works  first  reached 
his  ears,  he  was  seized  with  remorse.  ^^This,”  said  he, 
^fis  John  Baptist,  risen  from  the  dead.”  But  the  pang 
was  only  momentary.  And  by  this  time,  this  murder, 
as  well  as  all  his  vile  adulteries,  had,  by  his  seared 
conscience,  been  long  forgotten.  The  name  of  Jesus  no 
longer  disturbed  him.  He  regarded  Him  merely  as  a 
peripatetic  juggler,  whose  feats  were  the  wonder  of  tlie 
day.  Pilate’s  compliment  greatly  fiattered  him.  But 
it  delighted  him  the  more,  because  he  had,  for  a long 
season,  been  desirous  to  see  Jesus.  He  had  heard 
many  things  of  Him,  and  he  hoped  that  some  miracle — 
i.  e.,  feat  of  wonder— would  be  done  by  Him.  This 
would  gratify  his  vanity  and  curiosity,  and  impart  a 
fresh  sensation  to  him  who  lived  only  for  pleasure.  It 
was  therefore,  with  excited  feelings,  that  he  saw  Him, 


142 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


led  as  a prisoner,  into  the  large  audience  room. 

It  was  not  long  until  he  began  the  pantomime.  “He 
questioned  Him  in  many  words” — with  all  sorts  of 
j*ibald  and  rambling  questions.  But  nonsense  could 
not  long  live  in  that  Kingly  Presence.  Awed  by  the 
dignity  of  Him  who  stood  before  him,  and  by  those  calm, 
clear  eyes  set  so  steadily  on  his  own — he  hesitated, 
he  stopped.  If  he  waited  for  a reply,  he  received  none. 
Jesus  knew  the  man,  and  his  want  of  manliness.  He 
had  not  forgotten  the  murder  of  John  Baptist.  He  was 
not.  He  knew,  legally  before  him.  He  kept  silent. 

Then  the  chief  priests  and  scribes  arose,  and  vehe- 
mently accused  Him. 

His  calm  and  holy  silence  continued  unbroken. 

Then  upon  His  sacred  Person  burst  forth  the  ven- 
geance of  insulted  pride.  Herod,  to  act  the  buffoon,  had 
laid  aside  the  king.  How  he  acted  the  fiend.  He  joined 
his  men  of  war  in  the  frightful  insult  and  mockery. 
They  set  Jesus  at  nought,  that  is,  treated  Him  with  ut- 
most contempt  as  a nothing.  They  mocked  Him,  i,  e,^ 
ridiculed  His  Kingly  claims  and  character.  They  ar- 
rayed Him  in  estheeta  lamjpran^  a shining,  or  resplen- 
dent, robe.  Some  say  the  words  denote  the  white 
mantle  worn  by  Jewish  kings  and  Roman  grandees  on 
high  occasions.  Others  say  that  they  declare,  that  a 
white  robe  was  thrown  over  His  shoulders,  in  imitation 
of  that  worn  at  Rome  by  candidates  canvassing  for 
office,  an  indication  that  he  was  a weakling  candidate  for 
the  Jewish  throne,  and  it  was,  at  the  same  time,  an  indi- 
rect declaration  of  His  innocence  of  any  political  offense. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


148 


This  meaning  of  the  word  is  justified  by  Eev.  xv,  6, 
xix,  8 ; perhaps,  also.  Acts  x,  30.  But  it  seems  to  me 
altogether  too  weak  a meaning  for  the  circumstances. 
They  were  expressing  for  Jesus  their  utmost  contempt 
and  mocking.  Our  E.  Y.,  ^^gorgeous,’’  suits  better, 
and  is  justified  by  Jas.  ii,  2,  3.  They  arrayed  Him  in 
a brilliant  vesture,  some  cast-off  apparel  of  royalty 
taken  from  the  palace  wardrobe — the  same  robe,  per- 
haps, afterwards  used  by  Pilate’s  soldiers  in  the  same 
way.  (Matt,  xxvii,  31;  John  xix,  2-4.)  He  stood  be- 
fore them  a caricature  of  royalty.  Thus  apparelled, 
He  was,  under  the  guard  of  soldiers,  sent  back  to  Pilate 
— a sign  that  this  pretender  to  David’s  throne  de- 
served, not  condemnation,  but  contempt,  and  was  right- 
ly punished  by  ridicule. 

What  a spectacle  this,  for  the  crowd,  in  that  early 
morning  hour.  Jesus,  the  Son  of  God,  now  for  the 
second  time,  marched  through  the  streets  of  Jerusalem 
a prisoner,  chained,  and  now,  also,  clad  in  the  cast-off 
clothing  of  royalty.  How  strikingly  this,  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Gentile  ridicule  of  Jesus,  as  the  King,  cor- 
responds with  the  Jewish  ridicule  of  Him,  as  the  Christ. 


Section  VIII. 

JESUS  AGAIH  BEFORE  PILATE. 

Pilate’s  Second  Expedient. 

Luke  xxiii,  13-16. 

Pilate’s  second  declara-  ) And  Pilate,  when  he  had 
tion  that  Jesus  is  innocent.  J called  together  the  chief 
priests  and  the  rulers  and  the  people,  said  unto  them, 


144  THE  PIOLY  DEATH. 

Ye  have  brought  this  Man  unto  me  as  one  that  pervert- 
eth  the  people:  and  behold,  I,  having  examined  Him 
before  you,  have  found  no  fault  in  this  Man,  touching 
those  things  whereof  ye  accuse  Him : no,  nor  yet  Her- 
od: for  I sent  you  to  him,  and  lo,  nothing  worthy  of 
death  is  done  by  Him ; 

Pilate’s  second  expedient.]  I will  therefore  chastise 
Him,  and  release  Him. 


While  J esus  was  at  Herod’s  palace,  the  mass  of  the 
crowd  had  scattered.  So  soon  as  He  was  brought  back, 
and  Pilate  had  learned  the  judgment  of  Herod,  he 
called  priests,  rulers  and  people  together,  to  announce 
to  them  the  result. 

He  sums  up  the  case.  He  alludes  to  the  accusation. 
Then  he  states  that  his  own  examinations  had  revealed  not 
the  slightest  grounds  for  a criminal  charge.  He  had — he 
says  further — sent  Him  to  Herod,  who  had  lived  so 
long  in  Galilee,  and  would  have  known  if  there  had 
been  any  charges  against  the  Man.  “‘And  lo’ — this  is 
the  idea  in  the  Greek — ^He  is  found  to  have  done  noth- 
ing worthy  of  death.’  Everything  but  more  clearly 
establishes  His  innocence.  This  is  Herod’s  conviction. 

And  this  is  mine.  I will  therefore” what?  Release 

Him?  This  would  not,  but  in  the  hope  that  something 
less  than  death  would,  satisfy  the  Council,  or,  at  least,  that 
a party  in  J esus’  favor  would  be  formed,  he  proposed  a 
compromise.  “I  will,  therefore,  chastise” — he  uses  not 
the  fatal  word,  mastigoo^  or  phragelloo^  but  a milder 
paideuooj  which,  however,  may  include  the  dread- 
ful idea — “Him,  and  release  Him.” 


THE  HOLT  DEATH. 


14:5 


If  Jesus  was  innocent,  Pilate  had  no  right  to  chas- 
tise, if  guilty,  to  release.  Him.  He  had  declared  His 
innocence.  Hence  his  proposal — for  he  did  not,  then, 
carry  it  out — was  an  outrage  upon  justice  and  human- 
ity. This  concession  to  the  mob  was  fatal  to  Pilate’s 
hopes.  From  this  moment  on,  his  weakness  rapidly 
gave  way  to  their  fierce  determination,  until  he  became 
their  helpless  victim. 

Section  IX. 

PILATE’S  THIRD  EXPEDIENT. 

Barabbas. 

Matt,  xxvii,  15-26;  Mark  xv,  645;  Luke  xxiii,  18-25;  John 
xviii,  39,  40. 

Now  at  that  feast  the  governor  was  wont  to — for  of 
necessity  he  must — ^release  unto  the  people  one  prison- 
er, whom  they  would,  at  the  feast.  And  they  had  then 
— there  was  one — a notable  prisoner,  named  Barabbas, 
who,  for  a certain  sedition  made  in  the  city,  and  for 
murder  committed  in  the  insurrection,  lay  bound  in 
prison,  with  them  that  had  made  insurrection  with  him. 

Therefore,  when  they  were  gathered  together,  the 
multitude  crying  aloud,  began  to  desire  him  to  do  as 
he  had  ever  done. 

And  Pilate  answered  them,  saying.  Ye  have  a cus- 
tom that  I should  release  unto  you  one  at  the  Passover. 
Will  ye,  therefore,  that  I release  unto  you  the  King  of 
the  Jews?  For  he  knew  that  the  chief  priests  had  de- 
livered Him  for  envy?  Whom  will  ye  that  I release 
unto  you,  Barabbas,  or  Jesus,  which  is  called  Christ? 

Pilate  ascends  the  Judgment  seat  to  give  \ When 
his  official  decision.  His  wife’s  message.  \ he  was  set 
down  on  the  judgment  seat,  his  wife  sent  unto  him, 
saying,  Have  thou  nothing  to  do  with  that  just  Man; 


146 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


for  I have  suffered  many  things  this  day  in  a dream 
because  of  Him. 

But  the  chief  priests  and  elders  moved  {and)^  per- 
suaded the  multitude  that  they  should  ask  that  he 
should  rather  release  Barabbas  unto  them,  and  destroy 
Jesus.  And  they  cried  out  all  at  once,  saying,  Not  this 
Man,  but  Barabbas. 

The  governor,  Pilate,  therefore  willing  to  release  Je- 
sus, answered  and  said  again  unto  them.  Whether  of 
the  twain  will  ye  that  I release  unto  you? 

They  said,  Barabbas. 

Pilate  saith  unto  them.  What  will  ye,  then,  that  I 
shall  do  with  Jesus,  unto  Him  which  is  called  Christ, 
whom  ye  call  King  of  the  Jews? 

They  cried  out  again — all  say  unto  him — Crucify 
Him,  crucify  Him,  let  Him  be  crucified. 

Pilate’s  third  declara-  ) Then  the  governor,  Pilate, 
tion  of  Jesus’  innocence.  J saith  unto  them  the  third 
time,  Why,  what  evil  hath  He  done?  I have  found  no 
cause  of  death  in  Him:  I will  therefore  chastise  Him, 
and  let  Him  go. 

And  they  were  instant  with  loud  voices,  requiring 
that  He  be  crucified.  They  cried  out  the  more  exceed- 
ingly, Crucify  Him,  let  Him  be  crucified. 

And  the  voices  of  them,  and  of  the  chief  priests, 
prevailed. 

When  Pilate  saw  that  he  could  prevail  nothing,  but 
that  rather  a tumult  was  made,  he  took  water,  and 
washed  his  hands  before  the  multitude,  saying,  I am 
Pilate’s  fourth  declara-  ) innocent  of  the  blood  of  this 
tion  of  Jesus’  innocence,  j just  Person:  see  ye  to  it. 

Then  answered  all  the  people,  and  said.  His  blood  be 
on  us,  and  on  our  children. 

Pilate  gives  judgment  for  ) And  so  Pilate,  willing 
the  release  of  Barabbas.  J to  content  the  people. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


147 


gave  sentence  that  it  should  be  as  they  required.  And 
he  released  Barabbas  unto  them,  him  that  for  sedition 
and  murder  was  cast  into  prison,  whom  they  had  de- 
sired. 

As  Pilate  was  making  his  monstrous  proposal  to 
chastise,  and  then  release,  Jesus,  a new  crowd  rushed 
before  him,  loudly  demanding  that  he  should  do  as  he 
had  ever  done.  (Mark.)  This  cry,  destined  to  lead  to 
the  most  momentous  results,  was  taken  up,  and  re- 
echoed by  the  Sanhedrim  crowd. 

There  was  a custom,  the  origin  of  which  is  unknown, 
that  at  that  feast  the  governor  should  release  a prisoner, 
the  one  whom  the  people  desired.  And  in  those  tu- 
multuous times,  when  political  criminals  were  favorites, 
this  custom  was  highly  prised  by  the  people. 

Pilate  was  glad  to  hear  this  cry.  It  suggested  an 
expedient  which  he  hoped  would  liberate  Jesus,  and 
thus  free  himself.  He  would  grant  Jesus  at  the  request 
of,  and  as  a favor  to,  the  people.  Hoping  that  the  en- 
thusiasm aroused  by  the  Palm  Day  procession  was  still 
alive,  he  said,  ^‘Te  have  a custom  that  I release  unto 
you  one  at  this  feast.  Will  ye  that  I release  unto  you 
the  King  of  the  Jews?”  The  question  was  unexpected. 
The  crowd  hesitated.  Some,  evidently,  were  inclined 
to  say,  “yes.”  Pilate,  to  strengthen  this  feeliil^,  sent 
an  order  to  bring  out  a murderer,  who  was  that  day  to 
be  crucified.  Pilate  placed  him,  when  brought,  beside 
Jesus,  and  said:  “Whom  will  ye  that  I release  unto 
you,  Jesus  Barabbas  (that  man’s  name  according  to 
many  cursives  and  Mss.,  and  the  Armenian  Version — 


148 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


and  a reading  adopted  by  Tischendorf),  or  Jesus,  which 
is  called  Christ?”  Hoping  for  a favorable  response,  he 
put  on  the  toga,  or  official  robe,  and  ascended  for  the 
first  time,  the  Beema,  judgment  seat,  ready  to  give 
judgment  so  soon  as  the  people  had  spoken. 

While  he  waited  for  that,  an  incident  occurred,  which 
greatly  startled  him,  and,  for  a time,  stopped  the  pro- 
ceedings. This  was  a message  from  his  wife — Claudia 
Procla,  tradition  calls  her.  While  the  Jewish  Council 
and  crowd  were  howling  for  J esus’  death,  this  Roman 
matron,  the  wife  of  the  Representative  of  the  Roman 
majesty,  was  the  only  one  who  pleaded  for  His  life.  A 
Jewish  proselyte,  perhaps,  a God-fearing  heathen,  cer- 
tainly, she  was  interested  in  Him,  was  convinced  of  His 
innocence,  and  greatly  troubled  by  the  proceedings 
against  Him.  A dream,  supernatural,  awful,  harrow- 
ing, had  disturbed  her  uneasy  morning  slumbers.  In 
it  the  destinies  of  Jesus  and  of  her  husband  were 
strangely  intermingled.  Instantly,  upon  awakening, 
she  sent  a messenger,  in  hot  haste,  to  urge  upon  him 
to  have  nothing  to  do  with  that  just  Man,  and  gave,  as 
her  reason,  ^‘For  I have  suffered  many  things  this  day, 
in  a dream,  because  of  Him.”  This  message  was  given 

to  Pilate  when  he  was  on  the  Beema.  It  was  a warninor. 

o 

But  itihaade  no  impression,  save  to  quicken  conscience, 
and  increase  his  fears.  It  was  a testimony  to  the  inex- 
cusable guilt  of  the  council.  But  it  only  increased 
tlieir  rage. 

By  this  time  the  chief  priests  had  made  the  people  to 
be  all  of  one  mind.  From  every  part  of  the  crowd  rose 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


149 


the  shout,  ^^not  this  Man” — neither  rulers  nor  crowd 
mentioned  His  name  once  that  day — ^^but  Barabbas” — 
Bar,  son,  of  Abbas,  or  Abbas,  son  of  a Babbin.  Robbers 
were  so  common  that  his  being  one,  attracted  no  special 
attention,  nor  incurred  any  special  odium.  And,  in 
the  eyes  of  the  people,  glowing  with  desires  for  national 
freedom,  his  conduct  otherwise,  atoned  for  all  his  crimes. 
He  was,  it  seems,  one  of  the  growing  class,  afterwards 
called  Zealots,  who  hated  the  foreign  rule.  The  murder 
which  he  had  committed  was  in  an  insurrection.  And 
this  seditious  movement  against  Pilate,  arose  from  his 
(Pilate’s)  misappropriation  of  Temple  revenues  to  build 
an  aqueduct.  (Euwald.)  As  its  leader,  he  was  the  hero  of 
the  hour.  He  was  confessedly  guilty  of  the  crime  with 
which  Jesus  was  falsely  charged.  Yet  His  foes  could 
easily  point  out  to  the  crowd  their  distinction  between 
the  two.  Barabbas  was  for,  Jesus  was  against,  the 
Temple,  law,  and  national  institutions.  This  conduct  is 
an  important  element  in  their  crime.  It  made  them 
the  supporters  of  revolt,  and  the  enemies  of  the  spirit 
of  submission.  Hot  only  did  they  demand  the  death 
of  One  who  had  broken  no  law,  but  they  preferred,  aud 
desired,  the  release  of  one  who  had  broken  the  laws  of 
both  God  and  man.  Rejecting  innocence,  they  wel- 
comed crime.  Thus  they  really  condemned  themselves 
as  guilty  of  the  very  crime  that  they  charged  upon 
Jesus.  They  repudiated  the  spirit  of  faith  and  submis 
sion,  which  had  distinguished  the  whole  work  of  Jesus, 
and  which  might  have  saved  the  nation.  They,  at  the 
same  time,  let  loose  the  spirit  of  revolt,  which  hence- 


150 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


forth  rested  not,  until  it  had  brought  down  upon  city, 
nation  and  theocracy  an  awful  and  final  ruin.  All  this 
they  did  not  see.  But  they  did  see  the  deceit  which 
they  imposed  upon  themselves,  and  upon  the  crowd. 
And  they  hoped  that  Pilate  would  not  see  either  it,  or 
the  object  they  had  in  view.  And  they  succeeded. 

Again,  Pilate,  “willing  to  release  Jesus,”  asked  them 
which  of  the  two  they  would  have.  Again,  the  crowd 
cried  out,  Barabbas.  The  third  time  he  put  the  ques- 
tion— and  in  a form  which  showed  his  desire,  perplex- 
ity and  anxiety — “What  shall  I do  with  Jesus,  who  is 
called  Christ?”  He,  evidently,  hoped  they  would  say, 
“Give  Him  to  us,  too.”  But  instead,  and  for  the  first  time, 
that  awful  word,  “ORUOIFY  HIM,”  smote  his  ear 
and  heart. 

Pilate,  for  the  third  time,  declared  Jesus  innocent. 
“Why,  what  evil  hath  He  done?”  He  shuddered  at  the 
thought  of  infiicting  on  Him  that  cruel  punishment. 
He  proposed,  a second  time,  to  chastise,  and  then  release 
Him.  But  he  was  met  by  an  instant,  loud,  and  exceeding- 
ly determined  reply,  “LET  HIM  BE  CRUCIFIED.” 

. Crucifixion  was  a comnaon  form  of  punishment  from 
early  times.  It  was  invented  by  Semiiamis.  It  was 
used  by  Assyrians,  Egyptians,  Persians,  Greeks  and 
Romans.  It  was  ever  considered  the  most  horrible 
form  of  death.  In  its  exquisite  torture  and  extreme 
ignominy,  it  combined  the  pain  and  infamy  of  all  other 
punishments  in  the  fullest  measure.  Cicero  calls  it 
“the  most  cruel  and  infamous  death.”  Gibbon  says, 
“As  the  emblem  of  the  slave's  death  and  murderer’s 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


151 


punishment,  the  cross  was  looked  upon  with  the  pro- 
foundest  horror,  and  was  closely  connected  with  the 
ideas  of  pain,  guilt  and  ignominy.”  The  horror  of  the 
Jews,  even  from  the  earliest  times,  is  thus  expressed  in 
one  of  their  sacred  books:  ^^Cursed  is  every  one  that 
hangeth  on  a tree.”  (Deut.  xxi,  23.)  By  the  jus  civi- 
tatis^  which  exempted  every  Boman  citizen  from  this 
death,  slaves  only,  and  the  vilest  malefactors,  could  be 
crucified.  As  the  punishment  pronounced,  by  that  law, 
upon  sedition,  it  was,  that  day,  to  be  infiicted  upon 
Barabbas.  The  people,  with  a unanimous  and  simul- 
taneous (^pamjjleethei^  Luke)  voice,  placed  Jesus  in  his 
stead,  and  demanded  on  Him  the  punishment  due  to 
that  man.  Once,  and  again,  Pilate  had  interposed  to 
save  Jesus.  He  saw  ^^that  he  could  prevail  nothing.” 
The  agitation  was  increasing  every  moment.  There 
was  every  indication  of  a storm,  such  as  had,  some  time 
before,  swept  over  Caesarea,  had  lasted  six  days,  had  not 
been  arrested  by  slaughter,  and  was  not  quelled  until 
he  had  made  concession.  Such  a storm  in  Jerusalem 
was  to  be  dreaded.  It  must  be  prevented.  It  could  be,, 
only  by  his  yielding  to  the  clamor  of  the  crowd.  Yet, 
before  yielding,  he  made  another  effort  to  save  Jesus. 

"With  the  heathen  custom  of  cleaning  the  hands  from, 
and  with  the  Jewish  symbolical  action  of  repudiation  of, 
all  complicity  in  the  guilt  of,  murder  (Deut.  xxi,  6),  he 
was  well  acquainted.  He  arose  from  the  Beema,  des- 
cended to  the  platform,  took  water,  and  washed  his 
hands  before  the  multitude.  Hitherto,  his  phrases  had 
been,  “I  find  no  fault . in  Him,”  ^^What  evil  hath  He 


152  the  holy  death. 

done?”  find  no  cause  of  death  in  Him.”  But  he  now 
advances  from  the  negative  to  the  positive.  He  calls 
Jesus  this  just  Person — the  echo  of  his  wife’s  word 
sounding  in  his  soul,  and  voicing  his  conviction,  as  it  had 
voiced  her  own:  ‘‘1  am  innocent  of  the  blood  of  this  just 
Person ; see  ye  to  it.”  And  this  word,  and  its  accom- 
panying act  of  washing  his  hands  before  them  all,  were 
an  assurance  and  sign,  (a)  that  he  did  not  consent  to 
the  judgment  pronounced  by  the  Sanhedrim  upon  the 
prisoner,  and  (b)  that  in  giving  in  to  them,  he  was  only 
performing  a magisterial  act. 

Then  arose  from  ^‘all  the  people”  that  terrible  impre- 
cation, whose  awful  results  have  been  upon  them  and 
upon  their  descendants  to  this  day:  ^^His  blood  be  on 
us,  and  on  our  children.” 

This  answer  showed  Pilate  how  terribly  in  earnest 
was  that  mob.  It  would  be  satisfied  only  with  the  life 
of  Jesus.  By  that  imprecation  they  had,  so  far  as  they 
could,  relieved  him  from  all  responsibility  of  guilt  in 
the  death  of  the  prisoner.  And,  having  washed  his 
hands,  he  re-ascended  the  Beema,  whence  only  he  could 
give  his  official  judgment,  and  gave  it  for  Barabbas’ 
release.  Then,  amid  the  rejoicings  of  the  crowd,  the 
robber  and  murderer  was  set  free. 

Section  X. 

JESUS  DELIVERED. 

Matt,  xxvii,  26;  Mark  xv,  15;  Luke  xxiii,  25;  John  xix,  1-16. 

Fourth  indignity  to  Jesus.  ) Then  Pilate,  therefore, 
The  second  from  the  Gentiles.  \ took  Jesus,  and  scourged 
Him. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


153 


And  the  soldiers  platted  a crown  of  thorns  and  pnt  it 
on  His  head,  and  they  pnt  on  Him  a purple  robe,  and 
said,  Hail,  King  of  the  Jews. 

And  they  smote  Him  with  their  hands. 

Pilate’s  fifth  declara-  ) Pilate,  therefore,  went  forth 
tion  of  J esus’  innocence.  ) again,  and  saith  unto  them.  Be- 
hold, I bring  Him  forth  unto  you  that  ye  may  know 
that  I find  no  fault  in  Him. 

Then  came  Jesus  forth  wearing  the  crown  of  thorns, 
and  the  purple  robe.  And  Pilate  saith, 

BEHOLD  THE  MAN! 

When  the  chief  priests,  therefore,  and  the  officers 
saw  Him,  they  cried  out.  Crucify  Him,  crucify  Him. 

Pilate’s  sixth  declara-  ) Pilate  saith  unto  them, 
tion  of  Jesus’  innocence.  J Take  ye  Him  and  crucify 
Him : for  I find  no  fault  in  Him. 

A fresh  accusation  advanced.]  The  Jews  answered 
him.  We  have  a lavr,  and  by  our  law  He  ought  to  die, 
because  He  made  Himself  the  Son  of  God. 

When  Pilate,  therefore,  heard  that  saying,  he  was  the 
the  more  afraid; 

And  went  again  into  the  judgment  hall — the  Preto- 
rium — and  saith  unto  Jesus,  Whence  art  Thou? 

But  Jesus  gave  him  no  answer. 

Then  saith  Pilate  unto  Him,  Speakest  Thou  not  unto 
me?  Knowest  Thou  not  that  I have  power  to  crucify 
Thee,  and  have  power  to  release  Thee? 

Jesus  answered.  Thou  couldest  have  no  power  at  all 
against  Me,  except  it  were  given  thee  from  above: 
therefore,  he  that  delivered  Me  to  thee  hath  the  greater 
sin. 

Pilate’s  final  efforts  for  Jesus’  release.]  And  from 
henceforth  Pilate  sought  to  release  Him. 

The  Council’s  final  ac-  / But  the  Jews  cried  out, 
cusation  against  Jesus.  ) saying,  If  thou  let  this  Man 


154 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


go,  thou  art  not  Ca3sar’s  friend:  whosoever  maketh  him- 
self a King  speaketh  against  Csesar. 

Pilate  ascends  the  Judgment  seat  a second  ) When 
time:  now  to  pronounce  sentence  against  Jesus.  ) Pilate, 
therefore,  heard  that  saying,  he  brought  Jesus  forth, 
and  sat  down  in  the  judgment  seat  in  a place  that  is 
called  the  Pavement,  but  in  the  Hebrew,  Gabbatha. 
And  it  was  the  preparation  of  the  Passover,  and  about 
the  ninth  hour:  and  he  saith  unto  the  Jews,  Behold 
your  King! 

But  they  cried  out.  Away  with  Him,  away  with  Him, 
crucify  Him! 

Pilate’s  final  expostulation.]  Pilate  saith  unto  them, 
Shall  I crucify  your  King? 

The  chief  priests  answered.  We  have  no  King  but 
Caesar. 

Then  delivered  he  Him,  Jesus,  therefore  to  them,  to 
their  will,  to  be  crucified. 

Scourging  was,  by  Moses’  law,  an  infliction  pro- 
nounced against  one  offense  only,  nameless  here.  In  the 
days  of  the  monarchy,  however,  other  misdemeanors 
were  visited  with  it — at  times  with  a severity  that  gave 
to  the  instrument  the  name  ot  scorpions.  (2  Kings  xii, 
11.)  But  in  no  case  could  the  body  be  stripped  below 
the  waist,  nor  more  than  40  lashes  be  applied.  (2  Cor. 
xi,  24.)  The  Romans  inflicted  it,  in  its  milder  form, 
on  common  delinquents,  and  with  severity  on  those  con- 
demned to  death.  It  was,  so  say  Josephus  and  Roman 
historians,  an  obligatory  and  preparatory  part  of  the 
punishment  of  crucifixion.  The  law,  in  cases  of  treason, 
ran  thus;  ‘‘If  the  sentence  be  confirmed,  let  the  crimi- 
nal’s hands  be  bound,  let  him  be  veiled,  and  hanged  on 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


155 


the  cursed  tree,  after  having  been  scourged  either 
within  or  without  the  Pretorium.”  (Livy,  i,  27.)  The 
legal  order  was,  ^‘summove^  lictor^  despolia^  verb  era — 
lictor,  remove,  strip,  beat.”  He  then  stripped  the  whole 
body  bare,  and  tied  it  to  a post,  or  stretched  it  with 
cords  on  a frame,  face  downwards.  Then  he,  with  rods, 
or  leather  plaited  thongs,  loaded  at  the  end  with  sharp 
bones,  or  iron  points,  laid  on  the  strokes,  in  the  presence 
of  the  Judge,  who  urged  him  on — with  the  word,  da 
ilium  id^  give  it  to  liim — and  who,  only,  could  order 
him  to  stop.  There  was  no  legal  limit  to  the  num- 
ber of  the  strokes.  Blood  spurted  out  at  every  blow. 
The  culprit  was  beaten  till  the  back  was  cut  open  in  all 
directions,  and  often  the  breast  and  face.  The  person, 
if  he  died  not  under  the  infliction,  was  a hideous  and 
pitiable  spectacle.  In  his  letter  to  the  church  at  Smyr- 
na, Eusebius  has  given  a vivid  sketch  of  the  impression 
upon  spectators:  ‘^All  around  were  horrifled  to  see  the 
martyrs  so  torn  with  scourges  that  their  very  veins 
were  laid  bare,  and  the  inner  muscles  and  sinews,  and 
even  the  very  bowels,  were  exposed.”  Ho  wonder 
Horace  calls  this  degrading,  this  torturing  punishment 
— which  Homan  self-respect  forbade  the  infliction  of 
upon  any  Eoman  citizen — ^^horribile  jlagellumP 

Jesus’  prediction,  which  connects  His  scourging  with 
His  crucifixion  (Matt,  xx,  19;  Luke  xviii,  33),  shows 
that  it  was  this  scourging  that  was  inflicted  on  Him, 
Twice  had  Pilate  proposed  it  under  its  milder  form, 
chastise.  Now  it  is  done.  The  soldiers — lictors  were 
not  allowed  to  procurators — stripped  Jesus,  and  tied 


156 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Him  to  a post,  or  stretched  Him  on  a frame.  Strong 
hands  then  applied  the  lash.  This  was  done  on  the 
Pavement  in  front  of  the  Pretorium,  and  in  the  pres- 
ence of  Pilate  and  of  the  crowd. 

This  scourging  was  not  examination  by  torture  (Acts 
xxii,  24),  nor  was  it  the  legal  prelude  to  crucifixion. 
For  Pilate’s  second  sitting  on  the  Beema,  when  he  pro- 
nounced sentence  upon  Jesus,  was  after  this.  (Com. 
John  xix,  1,  with  v.  13.)  It  had  become  necessary, 
through  Jesus  having  been  put  into  the  place  of  Bar- 
abbas.  He  suffered  the  scourging  Barabbas  should  have 
receiv  ed.  It  was  done,  further,  with  the  hope  that  the 
sight  of  the  degraded,  mangled,  bleeding  Man  might 
placate  the  rage,  and  excite  the  compassion  of  the  Jews, 
and  that  they  would  therefore  consent  to  His  release. 
And  if  this  failed,  he  (Pilate)  would  then  regard  this  as 
the  legal  preliminary  to  crucifixion. 

We  would  fain  hope  that  this  scourging  was  in  the 
milder  form.  But  while  some  facts  allow,  others  forbid 
it.  It  was  the  infiiction  which  Barabbas  must  have  re- 
ceived, and  so  must  have  been  severe.  And  this  con- 
ception of  it  is  sustained  by  the  prophesies  concerning 
it,  and  by  some  of  the  verbs  used  to  describe  it.  On 
the  other  hand,  Pilate’s  disposition  towards  Him,  the 
strength  it  left  in  Him,  and  some  of  the  words  used  to 
describe  it,  suggest  less  severity.  Tlie  Lxx  render  the 
Hebrew  word,  translated  chastisement,  in  Is.  liii,  5,. 
paidaia.  And  this  is  the  noun  of  the  verb,  paideoo^ 
which  Pilate  uses  in  his  mention  of  this  infiiction. 
Luke  (xxiii,  16,  22),  Matthew  (xxvii,  26),  and  Mark 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


157 


(xv,  16)  use  phragelloo^  a Latin  term  introduced  into 
the  Greek,  which  means  flagellate,  without  detining  the 
degree  of  severity.  The  noun,  phragelliorhy  is  found  in 
John  ii,  15,  where,  certainly,  physical  severity  was  not 
used.  John’s  mastigoo  (xix,  1),  is  stronger.  It  is  the 
term  which  Jesus  uses  to  describe  this  infliction  upon  His 
followers  and  upon  Himself.  (Matt  x,  17;  xxiii,  34;  xx, 
19;  Mark  x,  34;  Luke  xviii,  33.)  It  is  used,  also,  to 
describe  the  fatherly  chastisements  of  God.  (Heb.  xii,  6.) 

But  whether  given  in  the  milder  or  severer  form, 
this  scourging  caused  the  blood  to  flow,  and  covered  the 
body  with  great  weals,  or  ridges.  So  had  prophecy 
said  it  would  be,  so  did  Peter  say  it  was.  He  uses . 
molopi^  the  same  word  used  by  the  Lxx  to  translate  the 
Hebrew  word  for  stripes:  ^^By  His  stripes,  bruises  (in 
the  margin)  we  are  healed.  (Is.  liii,  6;  1 Pet.  ii,  25.) 
The  molopi^  signifles  a contusion  from  a blow 

where  the  skin  is  not  broken,  but  where  blood  is  col- 
lected under  it,  making  it  black  and  blue.  But  the 
prophecy,  which  is  but  anticipated  fact,  gives  a very 
strong  meaning  to  the  word.  “He  was  tormented 
(Mar.)  for  our  transgressions.  He  was  bruised  for  our 
iniquities,”  “the  chastisement  of  our  peace  was  upon 
Him,  and  by  His  stripes  we  are  healed.”  Undoubtedly, 
the  suffering  which  He  endured  was  very  great..  Un- 
doubtedly, His  body  was  covered  with  blood. 

This  prophecy  is  not  vague  and  general,  but  minute 
and  particular.  It  describes  the  scene  as  if  it  were 
actually  passing  before  the  prophet’s  eyes.  It  was  ut- 
terly impossible  for  Isaiah  to  have  conjectured  it  700 


158 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


years  before  it  occurred.  What  the  inhnite  wisdom  of 
God  foretold,  the  voluntary  act  of  Pilate  fulfilled.  The 
infinite  love  and  compassion  of  the  Father  and  Son  to- 
wards guilty  man,  appear  strongly  in  it.  And  as  we  look 
upon  this  dreadful  sight,  as  we  see  how  patiently  and 
uncomplainingly  Jesus  bore  it  all,  and  what  a view  of 
the  hostility  and  depravity  of  man  whom  He  had  come 
to  save,  it  must  have  given  Him,  let  ns  also,  with  pro- 
found and  enduring  gratitude,  remember  that  it  was  the 
chastisement  of  our  peace  that  was  upon  Him,  that  it 
was  by  His  stripes  that  we  are  healed. 

The  narratives  lead  me  to  the  conclusion  that  J esus 
was  scourged  but  once,  was  twice  crowned  with  thorns 
— both  times  by  Pilate’s  soldiers,  once  before,  and  once 
after,  sentence — and  was  thrice  arrayed  in  the  robes  of 
mockery  and  contempt.  Herod’s  men  of  war  had  done 
this  already.  Pilate’s  detail  now  did  the  same  thing. 
And  after  Jesus  was  sentenced,  they  and  the  whole  band 
repeat  this  indignity. 

So  soon  as  Jesus  was  untied  from  the  post,  or  plat- 
form, and  His  clothes  were  put  on.  His  lacerated  body 
was  led  by  the  soldiers  into  the  Pretorium — perhaps 
into  the  guard-room.  There  He  was  treated  with  spec- 
ial indignity,  insult  added  to  cruelty — the  fifth  time  He 
was  thus  treated  on  that  day.  Pilate  seems  to  have 
taken  no  part  in  this  cruelty  and  wrong.  First,  the 
soldiers  plaited  a crown  of  thorns:  not  of  the  spina 
ChristL  for  its  thorns  are  too  stroiio;  and  large  to  be 
woven  into  a wreath:  but  of  the  Lyceum  spinosum^ 
l)robably.  It  grew  in  abundance  around  Jerusalem. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


159 


Its  flexible,  ronnd  branches  are  easily  plaited  into  any 
form.  These  sharp  thorn-spikes,  twined  into  the  rnde 
semblance  of  a crown,  were  crushed  upon  His  sacred 
head,  regardless  of  the  acute  agony  and  sufferings  which 
they  inflicted. 

Then  they  put  on  Him  a purple  (Mark,  John)  or 
scarlet  (Matt.)  robe.^  This  may  have  been  the  same 
cast-off  robe  of  royalty  in  which  He  had  been  arrayed 
by  Herod;  or  some  common  mantle  worn  by  soldiers 
and  officers,  resembling  the  robe  of  the  Emperor,  and 
indicating  that  they  were  imperial,  not  provincial, 
troops.  Then,  having  put  Him  upon  some  rude  seat, 
they  passed  before  Him,  saluted  Him  as  King  of  the 
Jews,  and  smote  Him  with  their  hands.  The  counter- 
part, all  this,  of  the  savage  ridicule  of  Jesus’  royalty, 
which  had  occurred  in  Herod’s  palace. 

As  Pilate  looked  upon  that  face,  pale  from  agony, 
that  body  bruised  and  withered  by  the  scourging,  he 
hoped,  by  the  sight,  to  inspire  the  people  with  the  pity 
which  he  felt  himself.  Having  ordered  the  soldiers  to 
bring  Him  after  himself,  he  went  out,  to  the  crowd. 
'^Attention!”  he  began,  ^^That  you  may  know  that  I 
find  no  fault  in  this  Man,  I bring  him  forth  to  you.” 
As  he  spake  these  words,  Jesus  came  forth  wearing  the 
thorn-crown  on  His  head,  and  the  purple  robe  around 
His  shoulders.  As  He  stood  before  them,  Pilate,  point- 
ing to  Him,  said,  Ide  ho  anthropos!  Ecce  Homo! 

[*  Royal  purple,  of  the  ancients,  was  what  would  now  be 
called  scarlet,  or,  it  may  be,  crimson.  The  difference  between 
scarlet  and  purple,  now  strongly  marked,  seems  hardly  to  have 
been  noticed  in  those  days.] 


160 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


BEHOLD  THE  MAH ! Look  at  Him,  tlie  Man  of  your 
own  nation,  whom  you  have  given  up  to  such  suffering 
and  shame!  Behold  the  scourged,  thorn-crowned,  pur- 
ple-robed, blood-covered  Man,  in  all  His  lofty,  yet  pa- 
tient, innocence,  as  He  stands  before  you,  without  con- 
fession, as  He  is  without  fault.  Unconsciously,  too,  was 
Pilate,  in  this  again  fulfilling  prophecy.  Behold  the 
Man,  the  Man  of  sorrows,  and  acquainted  with  grief.  (Is. 
liii,  3,  4-6.):  ^‘He  is  despised  and  rejected  of  men;  a 
man  of  sorrows,  and  acquainted  with  grief:  and 

we  hid  as  it  were  our  faces  from  Him ; He  was  despised, 
and  we  esteemed  Him  not.  Surely  He  hath  borne 
our  griefs,  and  carried  our  sorrows:  yet  we  did 

esteem  Him  stricken  smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted. 
But  He  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions.  He  was 
bruised  for  our  iniquities:  the  chastisement  of  our 
peace  was  upon  Him ; and  with  His  stripes  we  are  healed. 
All  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray;  we  have  turned 
every  one  to  his  own  way;  and  the  Lord  hath  laid  on 
Him  the  iniquity  of  us  all.” 

That  garb  of  mockery  could  not  hide  J esus’  royalty 
of  life,  nor  His  Kingly  bearing.  These  had  deeply  im- 
pressed Pilate.  These,  now,  hush  the  wild  and  angry 
crowd.  But  no  voice  rises  from  it  in  favor  of  Jesus.  In 
the  face  of  the  stern  and  unyielding  rulers,  none  dared 
to  thus  speak  out.  Pilate  was  disappointed.  He  saw 
that  the  rulers  were  not  hushed,  even  for  a moment.  His 
appeal  to  them  was  vain.  Every  spark  of  tenderness, 
every  noble  and  generous  impulse  was  extinguished  with- 
in them.  The  crown  and  purple  settle  them  more  firm- 
ly in  their  bloody  purpose.  Let  the  heathen  preach  hu- 
manity to  them,  if  they  will.  They  are  Jews.  This 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


161 


Man  is  their  victim.  They  will  be  satisfied  only  with 
His  blood.  They  will  again  demand  the  Roman  cross 
for  their  King.  The  multitude,  moved  with  pity,  are 
still.  But  not  so  the  chief  priests  and  their  partisans. 
As  they  look  upon  the  object  of  their  rage,  they  shout 
out,  “Crucify,’’  “Crucify” — showing  in  their  omission 
of  even  “Him,”  the  intensity  of  their  hate. 

Once  more  Pilate  shrunk  from  the  awful  responsibi- 
lity. ‘ He  is  shocked  at  their  excess  of  cruelty.  For  the 
sixth  time  he  asserts  Jesus’  innocence.  He  should  have 
promptly  set  him  free.  He  is  afraid  to  do  this.  But 
he  authorizes  them  to  crucify  Him.  “Do  it  yourselves. 
I shall  take  no  part  in  this  murder;”  this  is  the  meaning 
of  his  words.  But  they  fall  on  hearts  harder  than  a 
rock.  They  knew  not  that  Jesus  had  long  before  declared 
that  the  Gentiles  should  do  the  scourging  and  crucifying, 
and  that  their  own,  and  the  guiltiest  part,  in  the  awful 
tragedy,  was  to  deliver  Him  up  to  them.  But  they  knew 
their  own  determination,  and  that  was,  that  Jesus  should 
die,  and  that  Pilate  should  be  the  executioner.  If  they  at- 
tempted this  execution  there  might  be  a sudden  re- 
action of  the  people,  and  Jesus  would  be  released.  By 
nothing  short  of  the  fear  with  which  the  Roman  power 
inspired  the  people,  could  the  affair  be  carried  out  suc- 
cessfully. They  declined  Pilate’s  offer.  And  their  first 
and  second  plans  to  get  Pilate  to  act,  having  failed,  they 
instantly  changed  their  tactics.  They  abandoned  the  po- 
litical, and  bring  forward  their  third,  the  religious,  expe- 
dient: “In  your  eyes.  He  is  innocent;  in  ours,  He  is 

most  guilty.  We  have  a specific  law  (Lev.  xxiv,  16; 


162 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Dent,  xiii,  5;  xv,  20),  that  the  man  who  claims  equality 
with  God,  and  falsely  calls  himself  His  Son,  is  a blas- 
phemer. And  by  this  law  He  ought  to  die,  because  He 
made  Himself  why  os  Theou^  or  tou  Theou^  the  Son  of 
God. 

This  word  increased  Pilate’s  agitation.  Heroes  and 
demi-gods  were  familiar  ideas.  Through  them  came 
this  suggestion — this  phrase  implies  divine  descent.  Je- 
sus’ presence  and  bearing  had,  from  the  first,  awakened 
fears,  subsequently  quickened  into  apprehensions.  Now, 
all  that  he  had  heard  of  Him,  of  His  life,  miracles,  words, 
and  all  he  had  seen  of  His  bearing,  impressed  him  with 
the  mysteriousness  of  His  Person.  The  appalling  thought 
fiashed,  remained,  rose  up  vividly  before  his  conscious- 
ness, this  Ecce  Homo — is  He  the  Son  of  God?  Conscience, 
or  the  fear  of  the  law,  had  hitherto  held  him  back  from 
the  military  execution,  for  which  alone  he  was  respon- 
sible. Now  he  recoiled  from  pronouncing  sentence  upon 
this  One,  so  unlike  any  he  had  ever  seen  before.  He 
will  not  go  any  further  in  this  wretched  business  with- 
out further  inquiry.  And  ordering  Jesus  to  follow  him, 
he  went  again  into  the  Pretorium  for  a — not  judicial  in- 
vestigation— but  for  (the  second)  private  and  personal 
interview. 

His  first  question,  “Whence  art  Thou?”  shows  his  agi- 
tation and  alarm.  This  is  a far  better  question,  however, 
than  the,  “Art  Thou  the  King  of  the  Jews?”  “What  hast 
Thou  done?”  “What  is  truth?”  These  were  questions  of 
the  intellect,  this  was  one  of  the  heart.  It  was  an  ear- 
nest, honest  question,  a profound  and  fundamental  one, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


163 


about  Jesus’  being  and  origin.  It  showed  that  the  pier- 
cing, living  force  of  the  phrase,  ‘^Son  of  God,”  had  en- 
tered into  his  consciousness.  But,  for  the  fifth  time  on 
that  day,  Jesus  was  silent.  Was  he  unwilling  to  tell  who 
He  was?  Ho.  Constantly  had  He  declared  His  Divine 
Sonship.  On  that  morning  He  had  confessed  it  before 
the  Council.  This  silence  was,  to  Pilate’s  conscience, 
this  voice — are  you  willing  to  receive  the  truth?  It  was  a 
rebuke  of  his  conduct ; ^^when  I spake  before,  why  did  you 
not  believe?”  And  this  question  was  an  appeal  to  his 
sense  of  justice.  Pilate  had  repeatedly  said,  “I  find 
no  fault  in  Him.”  ‘‘If  you  release  Me  then,  it  must  be — 
so  this  silence  implied — on  the  ground  of  My  innocence, 
and  not  on  the  ground  that  I am  the  Son  of  God.” 

This  silence  irritated  Pilate.  His  teachable  disposi- 
tion vanished  like  the  morning  cloud.  The  haughtiness 
of  the  Roman  governor  re-appears.  You  have  refused 
to  reply  to  others.  Do  you  refuse  to  speak  to  me? 
^‘Know  you  not  that  I have  the  power  to  crucify,  or  to 
release  you?”  Thus  would  he  arouse  Jesus’  hopes  and 
fears. 

J esus,  knowing  that  all  power  was  in  Himself,  of 
right,  and  by  Divine  decree,  now,  for  a moment,  takes 
His  true  place  as  Judge.  All  the  facts  are  before  His 
mind.  He  weighed  Pilate  and  the  Jews  in  the  scales  of 
an  impartial,  everything-seeing  and  accurate  judgment, 
and  pronounced  on  the  respective  demerits  of  the  parties : 
^^You  speak  of  power,  I speak  of  dependence  and  res- 
ponsibility. You  say,  ‘I  have  power.’  I say,  ‘The 
power  you  have  is  given,  not  to  punish  or  release,  in  a 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


164 

loose  way,  but  righteously.  It  is  given  to  thee  from 
above.  To  the  Giver,  God,  you  are  responsible  for  its 
exercise.  You  have  official  power,  but  have  you  the 
moral  power  to  carry  out  your  own  convictions,  and  to  do 
what  is  right?  Have  you  not  acted  against  them  in 
your  treatment  of  Me?  You  know  that  I was  delivered 
to  you  from  envy,  and  not  for  a crime.  You  j)ro- 
nounced  Me  innocent,  yet  proposed  to  punish,  and  then 
release.  Me.  Again,  and  again  declaring  Me  innocent, 
you  have  yet  had  Me  scourged.  The  (official)  power, 
however,  which  you  exercise,  is  lawful,  for  it  is  given. 
And  it  relates  to  offen-ses  against  the  state.  But  the 
power  he  exercised — i.  ^.,  Caiaphas,  as  the  representa- 
tive of  the  nation,  and  the  Council  in  going  with  him 
(John  xviii,  14,  35) — in  delivering  Me  to  you,  is 
usurped.  The  question,  as  to  My  Personality,  belongs 
to  the  Council.  Against  the  cleare^^^t  evidence  have 
they  rejected  Me.  This  is  their  sin.  In  sending  Me 
to  thee  on  this  charge — ^.  ^.,  that  I am  the  Son  of  God 
— they  have  asserted  a power  which  God  hath  not  given 
them.  This,  again,  is  their  sin.  You  sin,  in  not  carry- 
ing out  your  convictions,  and  in  interfering  with  a mat- 
ter which  is  not  in  conflict  with  Roman  authority.  And 
this  the  Roman  law  forbids..*  The  sin  of  Him  who  de- 
livered Me  to  you  is  greater.  For  you,  a Roman,  have 
not  the  truth,  and  are  only  the  ministerial  executioner 
of  a sentence  already  given  on  a religious  accusatioiu 


[*Tlie  Roman  law  forbade  any  interference  with  the  laws  and 
religious  institutions  of  the  subjugated  nations,  where  they  were 
not  in  conflict  with  Roman  authority.] 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


165 


of  the  merits  of  which  you  knew  nothing.  But  he  is  a 
Jew,  has  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  and  is  conscious 
that  his  motives,  in  these  entire  proceedings,  are  wrong.” 

This  answer  made  a profound  impression  on  Pilate. 
ETc  touto^  from  that  time,  and  on  account  of  that  word, 
(John  xix,  12),  he,  anew  and  earnestly,  set  himself  to  de- 
liver Jesus.  'Not  by  word  merely,  but  by  some  distinct 
act — such  as  ordering  His  release,  or  a delay  in  the  pro- 
ceedings— he  purposed,  and  was  about,  to  close  the  case. 

Leaving  Jesus  in  the  Pretorium,  he  went  out  to  the 
Pavement.  Whether  it  was  his  looks,  or  actions,  or,  per- 
haps, words,  which  revealed  his  purpose,  we  know  not. 
But  the  already  excited  Jews  were  wrought  into  the 
highest  excitement  by  it.  They  instantly  carried  out 
their  fourth  plan,  that  of  threatening:  ‘rif  thou  let 
this  Man  go,  thou  art  not  Csesar’s  friend.”  That  word 
scattered  his  high  resolves  to  the  winds.  This  Csesar  was 
the  cruel  and  suspicious  Hero.  He  regarded  the  bare 
accusation  of  treason  as  crime  enough  to  be  punished 
by  death.  Pilate,  aware  of  his  own  exposedness  to  ac- 
cusation, felt  that  an  appeal  to  Rome  would  be  fatal. 
And  to  save  himself,  he  yielded  to  the  demands  of  the 
Council  and  to  the  outcries  of  the  crowd.  It  was  a0;ainst 
his  convictions,  and  to  his  pungent  self-regret  and  pro- 
found mortification.  But  it  was  done. 

It  was  now  about  9 A.  M.^  Pilate  again  put  on  the 
toga^  ascended,  for  the  second  time,  the  Beema,  judgment 


[*  See  Lange,  on  John,  pgs.  569,  570;  and  Andrews’  Life  of  our 
Lord,  pgs.  530-582,  for  remarks  upon  the  apparant  discrepancy  as 
to  tlie  time,  between  J ohn  and  the  Synoptists.] 


166 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


^^eat,  and  ordered  Jesus,  whom  he  had  previously  ordered 
the  soldiers  to  bring  out  of  the  Pretorium,  to  stand  be- 
fore him. 

The  Jews,  who,  like  ravening  wolves,  were  waiting  for 
their  prey,  thought  that  sentence  was  about  to  be  given. 
But  no.  Pilate  once  more  interposed.  With  savage 
irony  he  exclaimed,  ‘‘Behold  your  King!”  They  saw 
that  this  thrust  was  aimed  at  them,  not  at  Jesus.  This 
sarcasm  intensified  their  rage.  Their  response,  thrice 
shrieked  out,  was,  “Away  with  him!”  And  the  three 
imperative  Aorists,“A.7’(??^,  aron^  staurooson,  away,  away, 
crucify,”  express  their  impatience,  and  haste  to  have  it 
done.  Again,  and  for  the  last  time,  Pilate,  who  is  now 
resigned  to  yield,  gives  a word,  which  is  both  an  expos- 
tulation with,  and  a revenge  upon,  them,  for  forcing  him 
to  do  an  act  of  such  baseness  and  wrong:  “Shall  1 cru- 
cify  your  King?” 

This  word  infiamed  their  rage  to  that  degree  that 
they  committed  political  suicide.  By  their  own  act  and 
word  they  abandoned  all  their  theocratic  hopes,  all  na- 
tional independence,  all  ennobling  thoughts  of  the  exal- 
ted position  occupied  for  centuries — Jehovah  is  our 
King.  They  pronounced  with  their  own  lips  the  aboli- 
tion of  the  theocracy,  and  gave  themselves  over  wholly 
to  Caesar,  as  his  vassals.  “Let  the  throne  of  our  fathei  s 
crumble  to  dust:  Let  our  historic  position  and  national 

existence  be  blotted  out:  Let  what  may  come  to  us  as 
individuals,  or  a nation:  We  care  not — so  that  this  ha- 
ted One  be  crucified.  We  hate  the  throne  of  the  Caesars. 
But  as  between  this  Man  and  it,  we  have  no  hesitancy. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  167 

To  you,  the  representative  of  the  Emperor,  we  say,  ‘We 
have  no  King  bnt  Caesar.’” 

Then  Pilate  gave  sentence,  perhaps,  in  the  cnstomary 
form,  Ibis  ad  crucem:  I miles ^ expidi  crucem^  y > thou 
to  the  cross,”  “Go,  soldier,  get  ready  the  cross.”  But 
to  make  it  appear  that  he  was  acting  solely  in  discharge 
of  his  duty  to  Tiberius,  and  that  the  whole  responsibility 
of  the  deed  rested  upon  them,  he  “delivered  Jesus  to  their 
will,”  and  placed  soldiers  under  their  direction.  For 
all  the  subsequent  indignities,  they  are  under  the  guilt- 
ier responsibility. 

The  details  of  the  trial  force  on  the  mind  the  convic- 
tion that  Jesus  was  sacrificed  by  Pilate  to  the  exigency  of 
his  position.  It  was  certainly  an  embarrassing  one.  Before 
him  was  a prisoner  of  whose  innocence  he  had  no  doubt. 
Judgment,  conscience,testimony,  said, “Discharge  Him.” 
But  over  against  His  innocence,  dignity  and  majesty 
were,  on  the  one  hand,  the  astuteness,  the  perseverance,, 
the  shameless  suppleness,  the  diabolical  malignity  of  the 
accuser,  Oaiaphas,  backed  by  the  Sanhedrim,  and  by  the 
brute  force  of  a vast  mob ; and  on  the  the  other,  was  the 
dread  of  Osesar,  who  with  one  stroke  of  the  pen,  could  hurl 
him  to  destruction.  Did  he  drive  the  people,  already 
exasperated  by  his  acts,  to  extremity,  they  would  accuse 
him  to  Home,  and  that  would  be  his  ruin,  perhaps  death. 
These  forces,  acting  on  his  fears,  were  stronger  than  his 
nobler  nature.  He  yielded  to  the  mob.  He  sacrificed 
Jesus  to  save  himself.  What  a sight!  The  nation, 
through  their  rulers,  giving  up  their  Christ  to  the  Gen- 
tiles to  be  legally  killed!  What  an  ending  of  centurie& 


168 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


of  the  grandest  history  ever  written ! What  an  act  of 
national  suicide!  And  what  a self- degradation  for  Pilate! 

Section  XI. 

THE  CRUCIFIZIOH  OF  JESUS. 

Matt,  xxvii,  27-56 ; Mark  xv,  16-41 ; Luke  xxiii,  26-49 ; John  xix,  16-37 

The  continuous  narratives  of  the  above  places  is  as 
follows: 

Jesus  crowned  with  thorns  the*  second  time.  ) Then 
Sixth  indignity  to  his  Person;  the  fourth  from  v the  sol- 
the  Gentiles.  ) diersof 

the  governor  took  Jesus,  and  led  him  away  into  the 
common  hall,  called  Pre  tori  urn,  and  they  call  together, 
and  gather  unto  Him,  the  whole  band  of  soldiers.  And 
they  stripped  Him,  and  put  on  Him  a scarlet  robe — 
clothed  Him  with  purple.  And  when  they  had  platted 
a crown  of  thorns,  they  put  it  upon  His  head,  and  a reed 
in  His  right  hand:  and  they  bowed  the  knee  before  Him, 
and  began  to  salute  Him — mocked  Him — saying.  Hail, 
King  of  the  Jews!  And  they  smote  Him  on  the  head 
with  a reed,  and  they  spit  upon  Him,  and  bowing  their 
knees,  worshipped  Him.  And  when  they  had  mocked 
Him,  they  took  off  the  purple — the  robe — from.  Him, 
and  put  His  own  clothes  on  Him,  and  led  Him  away — 
out — to  crucify  Him. 

JESUS  ON  HIS  WAY  TO  CALYAKY. 

And  they  took  Jesus  and  led  Him  away.  And  He, 
bearing  His  cross,  went  forth.  And  there  were  also  two 
others,  malefactors,  led  out,  with  Him  to  be  put  to  death. 
And  as  they  came  out,  (and)  led  Him  away,  they  found 
a Cyrenean — a man  of  Cyi’ene — one  Simon  by  name, 
who  passed  by,  coming  out  of  the  county,  the  father 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


169 


Alexander  and-  Eufiis;  and  they  laid  hold  of  him,  and 
on  him  they  laid  the  cross,  that  he  might,  and  they 
compelled  him  to,  bear  His  (Jesus’)  cross  after  Him. 

And  there  followed  Him  a great  company  of  people, 
and  of  women  which  also  bewa.led  and  lamented  Him. 

But  Jesus,  turning  unto  them,  said.  Daughters  of  Je- 
rusalem, weep  not  for  Me,  but  weep  for  yourselves,  and 
your  children.  For,  behold,  the  days  are  coming  in  the 
which  they  shall  say.  Blessed  are  the  barren,  and  the 
wombs  that  never  bare,  and  the  paps  which  never  gave 
suck.  Then  shall  they  begin  to  say  to  the  mountains.  Fall 
on  us;  and  to  the  hills.  Cover  us.  For  if  they  do  these 
things  in  a green  tree,  what  shall  be  done  in  the  dry? 

AT  CALYAKY— JESUS  CEUCIFIED. 

And  when  they  bring  {and)  were  come  unto 

the  place  which  is  called  in  the  Hebrew,  Golgotha, 
which  is,  being  interpreted,  called  {in  the  Greek) 
Kranion — Calvary — the  place  of  a skull. 

They  gave  Him  vinegar — Avine — mingled  with 
myrrh — gall — and  when  He  had  tasted  thereof.  He  re- 
ceived it  not,  would  not  drink. 

And  there  they  crucified  Him.  And  it  was  the  third 
hour;  and  they  crucified  Him. 

And  Pilate  wrote  a title,  and  put  it  on  the  cross. 
And  the  superscription  of  His  accusation,  written  in 
letters  of  Hebrew,  and  Greek,  and  Latin,  and  set  up 
over  His  head  by  the  soldiers,  was, 

The  full  title.]  THIS  IS  JESUS  OF  NAZAEETH, 
THE  KING  OF  THE  JEWS. 

This  title  then  read  many  of  the  Jews:  for  the  place 
where  Jesus  was  crucified  was  nigh  to  the  city. 

Then  said  the  chief  priests  of  the  Jews  to  Pilate, 
Write  not.  The  King  of  the  Jews,  but  that  He  said,  I 
am  the  King  of  the  Jews. 

Pilate  answered,  AYhat  I have  written,  I have  written. 


170 


THE  HOLY  DEATH 


A surprise.]  And  two  others,  malefactors,  two 
thieves,  staurountai  [^present  tense)  are  crucified  with 
Him — on  either  side  one — the  one  on  His  right  hand, 
and  the  other  on  His  left.  And  the  Scripture  (Is.  liii, 
12)  was  fulfilled  which  saith.  And  He  was  numbered 
with  transgressors. 

Jesus’  first  word  from  the  cross.]  Then  said  Jesus, 
Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do. 

Then  the  soldiers,  when  they  had  crucified  Jesus, 
took,  and  parted  His  garments,  and  made  four  parts,  to 
every  soldier  a part,  casting  lots  upon  them  what  every 
man  should  take:  and  also  His  coat:  now  the  coat  was 
without  seam,  woven  from  the  top  throughout.  They 
said,  therefore,  among  themselves.  Let  us  not  rend  it, 
but  cast  lots  for  it  whose  it  shall  be:  that  the  Scrip- 
ture might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken  by  the  proph- 
ets— which  saith — • (Fs.  xxii,  18 — quotation  verbatim 
from  Lxx) — They  parted  My  garments  among  them, 
and  for,  and  upon.  My  vesture  did  they  cast  lots. 

These  things,  therefore,  the  soldiers  did. 

And  sitting  down  they  watched  Him  there. 

And  the  people  stood  beholding. 

JESUS  REVILED. 

By  the  passers  by.]  And  they  that  passed  by  railed 
on  Him,  reviled  Him,  wagging  their  heads,  and  saying, 
Ah,  Thou  that  destroyest  the  Temple,  and  buildest  it 
in  three  days,  save  Thyself.  If  Thou  be  the  Son  of 
God,  come  down  from  the  cross. 

By  the  rulers  and  priests.]  Likewise  also  the  rulers,* 
and  the  chief  priests,  with  the  elders  and  scribes,  derided 
Him.  Mocking,  {they)  said  among  themselves.  He 
saved  others:  Himself  He  cannot  save.  Let  Him  save 

Himself  if  He  be  Christ,  the  chosen  of  God.  Let 


U“With  them,”  Luke  xxiii,  35,  is  not  genuine.] 


THE  HOLY  DEATH 


171 


Christ,  the  King  of  Israel — if  He  be  the  King  of 
Israel — descend  now,  come  down  from  the  cross,  that 
we  may  see  and  believe,  and  we  will  believe  Him.  He 
trusted  in  God;  let  Him  deliver  Him  now,  if  He  will 
have  Him : for  He  said,  I am  the  Son  of  God. 

By  the  soldiers.]  And  the  soldiers  also  mocked 
Him,  coming  to  Him,  and  offering  Him  vinegar,  and 
saying,  If  Thou  be  the  King  of  the  Jews,  save  Thyself. 

By  the  two  thieves.]  And  they,  the  thieves,  also, 
that  were  crucified  with  Him,  reviled  Him,  cast  the 
same  in  His  teeth.  And  one  of  the  malefactors  {the  un- 
changed one)  railed  on  Him,  saying.  If  Thou  be  the 
Christ,  save  Thyself  and  us. 

One  of  them  relents.]  But  the  other,  answering,  re- 
buked Him,  saying,  Dost  not  thou  fear  God,  seeing 
thou  art  in  the  same  condemnation?  And  we  indeed 
justly;  for  we  receive  the  due  reward  of  our  deeds:  but 
this  Man  hath  done  nothing  amiss.  And  he  said  unto 
Jesus,  Lord,  remember  me  when  Thou  comest  into  Thy 
Kingdom. 

Jesus’  second  word  from  the  cross.]  And  Jesus  said 
unto  him,  Yerily  I say  unto  thee,  To-day  shalt  thou  be 
with  Me  iA.  Paradise. 

THE  CLOSING  SCENES. 

Now  there  stood  by  the  cross  of  Jesus  His  mother, 
and  His  mother’s  sister  (Salome)^  Mary,  the  wife  of 
Cleophas,  and  Mary  Magdalene.  When  Jesus,  there- 
fore, saw  His  mother  and  the  disciple  standing  by, 
whom  Jesus  loved, 

Jesus’ third  word  from  the  cross.]  He  saith  unto  His 
mother.  Woman,  behold  thy  Son!  Then  saith  He  to  the 
disciple.  Behold  thy  mother! 

And  from  that  hour  that  disciple  took  her  unto  his 
own  home. 


172 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Noon,  The  three  hours’ darkness  HOW  begins.]  And  it 
was  about  the  sixth  hour— the  sixth  liour  was  come — 
and  there  was  darkness  epi  pasan — oleen — teen  geen 
(in  all  three  Synoptists)  over  all  the  land  (E.  V.  Luke, 
‘‘earth”)  from  the  sixth  until  the  ninth  hour.  And  the 
sun  was  darkened. 

And  about,  at,  the  ninth  hour,  Jesus  cried  with  a 
loud  voice,  saying, 

3 P.  M.  Fourth  word  from  the.  cross.]  Eli,  Eli — 
Eloi,  Eloi — lama  sabacthani!  which  is,  being  interpre- 
ted, My  God,  My  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  Me? 

And  some  of  them  that  stood  by  there,  when  they 
heard  that,  said.  Behold,  this  Man  calleth  for  Elias. 

After  this  Jesus  knowing  that  all  things  were  now 
accomplished,  that  the  Scripture  (Ps.  Ixix,  21,)  might 
be  fulfilled,  saith. 

Fifth  word  Irom  the  cross.]  I thirst. 

Now  there  was  set  a vessel  full  of  vinegar.  And 
straightway  one  of  them  ran,  and  took  a sponge,  and 
tilled  it  full  of  vinegar,  and  put  it  upon  hyssop — on  a 
reed — and  put  it  to  His  mouth,  and  gave  Him  to  drink, 
saying.  Let  alone — and  the  rest  said — Let  be;  let  us  see 
whether  Elias  will  come  to  save  Him,  to  take  Him 
down. 

When  Jesus,  therefore,  had  received  the  vinegar,  He 
Sixth  word  from  the  cross.]  said.  It  is  finished. 

And  when  Jesus  had  cried  again  with  a loud  voice. 
He  said, 

Seventh  and  last  word  from  the  cross.]  Father,  into 
Thy  hands  I command  My  spirit. 

Just  after  3 P.  M.]  And  having  said  this.  He  bowed 
His  head,  and  gave  up  the  ghost. 

Phenomena  and  Incidents  Connected  with  His  Death, 

Temple  veil  rent.  Earthquake.  Opened  graves.]  And 
behold  the  veil  of  the  Temple  was  rent  in  twain,  in  the 


THE  HOiY  DEATH. 


173 


middle,  from  the  top  to  the  bottom.  And  the  earth 
did  quake,  and  the  rocks  rent;  and  the  graves  were 
opened:  and  many  bodies  of  the  saints,  which  slept, 
arose,  and  came  out  ot  their  graves  after  His  resurrec- 
tion, and  went  into  the  Holy  City,  and  appeared  unto 
many. 

The  impression  upon  the  officer  and  soldiers.]  Now 
when  the  centurion  which  stood  over  against  Him,  and 
they  that  were  with  him  watching  Jesus,  saw  the  earth- 
quake, and  those  things  that  were  done,  and  that  He  so 
cried  out,  and  gave  up  the  ghost,  they  feared  greatly. 
And  he  {the  centurion)  glorified  God,  saying. 

His  exclamation.]  Certainly  this  was  a righteous 
Man.  Truly  this  Man  was  the  Son  of  God. 

llie  impression  on  the  beholders.]  And  all  the 
people  that  came  together  to  that  sight,  beholding  the 
things  which  were  done,  smote  their  breasts  and  re- 
turned. 

Jesus’  friends  witness  the  scene.]  And  many  women 
•also  were  there:  among  whom  were  Mary  Magdalene, 
and  Mary,  the  mother  of  James,  the  Less  and  of  Joses, 
and  Salome,  the  mother  of  Zebedee’s  children;  who, 
also,  when  He  was  in  Galilee,  followed  Him,  and  min- 
istered unto  Him:  which  (also')  followed  Him  from 
Galilee,  ministering  unto  Him:  and  many  other  women 
which  came  up  with  Him  unto  Jerusalem.  (^These) 
and  all  His  acquaintances  stood  afar  off,  beholding 
these  things. 

His  enemies’  action.]  The  Jews,  therefore,  because 
it  was  the  preparation  that  the  bodies  should  not  remain 
on  the  cross  on  the  sabbath  day,  for  that  sabbath  day 
was  an  high  day,  besought  Pilate  that  their  legs  might 
be  broken,  and  that  they  might  be  taken  away. 

Then  came  the  soldiers,  and  broke  the  legs  of  the 
first,  and  of  the  other,  which  were  crucified  with  Him. 


174 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


But  when  they  came  to  Jesus,  and  saw  that  He  was 
dead  already,  they  break  not  His  legs:  but  one  of  the 
Jesus’  body  pierced.]  soldiers,  with  a spear,  pierced 
His  side,  and  forthwith  came  thereout  blood  and  water. 

And  he  that  saw  it  bare  record,  and  his  record  is 
true:  and  he  knoweth  that  he  saith  true,  that  ye  might 
believe.  For  these  things  were  done  that  the  Scripture 
(Ex.  xii,  46;  Hum.  ix,  12;  Ps.  xxiv,  20)  should  be  ful- 
filled, A bone  of  Him  shall  not  be  broken.  And 
again  another  Scripture  (Ps.  xxii,  16;  Zech.  xii,  10) 
saith,  They  shall  look  on  Him  whom  they  pierced. 

The  narratives  of  the  crowning,  given  in  John  xix, 
and  in  Matthew  and  Mark,  show  that  Jesus  was  twice 
crowned  with  thorns.  Both  crownings  were  done  by 
the  soldiers,  and  in  the  Pretorium.  But  the  first  was 
by  few  of  these,  the  second  by  the  whole  band.  The  first, 
which  we  have  already  described,  was  by  the  permission  of 
Pilate,  before  sentence  was  passed,  the  second  was  after, 
and  after  Jesus  had  been  delivered  to  the  will  of  the  coun- 
cil. In  the  first,  Jesus  was  not  stripped,  had  no  reed  put 
into  his  hand,  was  not  spit  upon,  was  not  bowed  to  in 
mockerv,  all  which  were  connected  with  the  second. 

So  soon  as  Jesus  was,  by  Pilate’s  order,  delivered 
over  to  the  will  of  the  council  for  execution,  the  sol- 
diers, by  their  order,  or  permission,  took  Him  into  the 
Pretorium,  perhaps  into  their  own  quarters.  They 
gathered  the  whole  cohort,  of  from  400  to  600  men,  to- 
gether, that  all  might  share  in  their  brutal  sport.  It 
was  the  German  legion  of  Roman  soldiers,  then  sta- 
tioned in  Jerusalem.  (Olshausen,  in  loco,)  They  stripped 
Jesus,  and  put  on  Him,  probably,  one  of  their  own 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


175 


military  cloaks.  Then  they  platted  a crown  of  thorns 
and  pnt  it  upon  His  head,  and  a reed  in  His  right 
hand,  and  bowed  in  front  of  Him,  saying,  ^^Hail,  King 
of  the  Jews.”  Then  they  spit  upon  Him,  and  taking 
the  reed  from  His  hand,  with  it  smote  Him  on  the 
head.  These  blows,  falling  on  the  thorn- crown,  must 
have  inflicted  upon  Him  almost  unbearable  pain. 

When  they  grew  weary,  they  took  ofi  the  mantle,  put 
on  Him  His  own  clothes,  and  prepared  Him  for  the 
march  to  the  place  of  death.  As  no  mention  is  made 
of  the  crown  of  thorns  being  taken  off,  it,  probably,  re- 
mained on  His  head  until  removed,  by  loving  hands, 
after  His  death.  Then  the  two  cross  pieces  of  the 
cross,  tied  together  in  the  shape  of  the  letter  Y,  were 
put  over  His  head,  on  to  His  shoulders,  and  His  arms 
were  bound  to  the  pieces.  Then  the  tablet  was  hung 
around  His  neck  (Dio  Cassius)  or  handed  to  the  crucia- 
rios^  a soldier  or  inferior  officer,  to  carry  it  before  Him.* 
This  tablet  bore  His  name  and  offense  painted  in  three 
languages,  in  large  black  letters,  on  white  gypsum, 
which  was  fastened  to  a board.  After  the  crucifixion, 
it  was  nailed  on  the  cross.  A special  detail  of  four 
soldiers,  from  the  German  legion,  was  His  guard. 
Some  soldiers  were  detailed  to  carry  the  hammer,  nails, 
ropes  and  assuaging  drink.  A detachment  of  the  Ger- 
man legion  was  ordered  to  attend  the  procession.  A 
centurion  on  horseback,  called  by  Tacitus,  exactor 

[*This  was  the  usual  custom.  But  from  the  words,  “Pilate  wrote 
a title,  &c.,”  it  seems  probable  that  it  was  sent  after  Jesus  was  on 
the  cross. 


176 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


mortis^  by  Seneca,  centurio  supjplicio  jprcejposituSy 
headed  the  company.  A herald  in  front  proclaimed 
the  offense  and  sentence. 

It  was  about  9 A.  M.  Everything  was  ready,  and 
the  mournful  procession  started  from  the  Fort  along 
those  streets  and  that  road  which,  in  Christian  thought, 
is  called  via  Dolorosa,  Accompanying  it  was  a 
deputation  of  the  Council,  and  a vast  crowd  of  people, 
mostly  citizens.  Intermingled  with  them  was  a company 
of  Judean  mothers  and  daughters.  On  the  outside  of, 
or  behind  the  crowd,  were  timed,  frightened,  faithful 
followers  of  Jesus,  among  whom,  besides  others  men- 
tioned, were  Jesus’  mother,  and  the  loving  John.  I’he 
streets  were  filled  with  multitudes,  called  out  by  the 
excitement,  and  many  of  them  followed  after,  and  were 
spectators  of  the  crucifixion. 

After  the  procession  had  passed  beyond  the  city  gate 
— exelthen^  gone  forth  outof  (Jn.) — Jesus,  perhaps,  (but 
the  narratives  do  not  say  so),worn  much  by  the  long  fast- 
ing and  protracted  sufferings,  went  slowly,  and  detained 
the  procession.  Just  then  a man  passed  by,  coming  in 
ap  agron^  from  the  field.  This  suggests  that  he  resided 
in  the  city  (Acts  vi,  9),  and  had  been  at  work.  He 
had,  perhaps,  the  appearance  of  a working  man,  as  also 
of  a foreigner.  It  would  not  create  so  much  of  a stir 
to  make  him  do  a thing  that  was  considered  most  de- 
grading. Him,  the  soldiers,  most  probably  the  officer 
in  command — compelled  — heggareusan  — a military 
term — pressed  into  service.  On  him  they  laid  Jesus’ 
cross^  and  compelled  him  to  carry  it  after  Him.  This 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


177 


involuntary  cross-bearer  was  called  Simon,  the  Cyreni- 
an.  He  came  from  Cyrene,  a city  of  Lyban  Africa. 
He  may  have  been  a descendant  of  one  of  those  Jewish 
families,  which  had  been  deported  into  Africa  by 
Ptolemy  Lagi,  300  years  before,  and  which  had  so  mul- 
tiplied that  they  had  a synagogue  in  Jerusalem,  from 
which  came  some  of  the  converts  of  Pente(iOst.  (Acts 
ii,  10.)  He  seems  to  have  had  no  previous  knowledge 
of  Jesus,  and  no  sympathy  for  Him.  He  either  had  no 
knowledge  of,  or  no  interest  in,  that  day’s  momentous 
transactions,  for  he  was  in  his  field.  But  he  witnessed 
the  tragic  close.  He  heard  the  seven  cries  from  the 
cross,  and  the  centurion’s  testimony.  He  was  won  to 
Jesus,  with  his  family.  His  name  has  honorable 
mention,  and  his  sons,  Alexander  and  Rufus,  trained 
under  healthful  infiuences,  became  distinguished  mem- 
bers of  the  church  in  Rome,  where  he  and  his  family 
afterwards  settled.  (Rom.  xvi,  13.) 

As  Calvary  was  approached,  perhaps  reached,  and 
the  crowd  had  parted  to  let  Jesus  pass  through  to  the 
place  of  death,  the  only  other  incident  by  the  way, 
which  The  Holy  Spirit  has  been  pleased  to  record,  oc- 
curred. Jesus,  in  passing  on,  turned  to  speak  to  the  wom- 
en who  had  followed  Him  from  the  city,  bewailing  and 
lamenting  Him.  These  were  ladies  of  Jerusalem.  They 
had,  probably,  seen  Him  in  the  Temple,  heard  Him 
preach,  and  had  seen  His  works.  They  did  not  bewail 
Him  like  the  women  of  Gralilee,  as  a Master,  loved  and 
revered.  But  they  had  no  sympathy  with  His  persecu- 
tors. They  regarded  Him  as  an  innocent  Man,  led  to 


178 


THE  HOLY  heath. 


an  awful  death.  The  tears  were  those  of  genuine  womtmly 
sympathy  with  injured  innocence  and  nobility  suftering 
from  injustice  and  cruelty.  As  Pilate’s  wife  was  the 
only  one  who  had  the  courage  to  speak  for  Him  during 
His  trial,  so  these  women  were  the  only  ones  who  had  the 
courage  to  express  their  sympathy  with  Him  on  the 
way  to  Calvary,  and  that,  too,  despite  Koman  law,  which 
forbade  such  lamentations  for  criminals.  Strange  sight 
in  the  midst  of  so  much  mockery ! Strange  sounds  in  the 
midst  of  so  many  fierce  cries  of  hate!  It  indicates  the 
beginning  of  better  things.  As  Lange,  in  his  ^^Life  of 
Jesus,”  beautifully  expresses  it,  “Now  already  the  first 
breezes  of  a better  temper  begin  to  breathe;  the  har- 
bingers of  the  courage  of  the  cross  are  coming  to  view.” 
Jesus,  all  day,  had  been  true  to  Himself.  He  alone, 
in  the  midst  of  all  the  turbulent  scenes  of  the  trials, 
had  been  calm.  Then,  so  now,  everything  was  in  per- 
fect harmony  with  all  that  He  had  said  of  Himself. 
Then,  His  personal  dignity  and  greatness  were  conspic- 
uous; now.  His  self-forgetful  interest  in  others  shines 
forth.  Those  tears  of  pity  stir  the  noblest  sympathies 
of  His  nature.  His' p rescience  saw  those  desolations 
which  were  coming  on  the  doomed  city — those  awful 
results  of  the  imprecation,  “His  blood  be  on  us  and  on 
our  children,”  whose  horrors  Josephus  so  graphically . 
describes.  He  saw  the  hundreds  of  crosses  on  which 
Jews  were  crucified  by  Rome.  He  saw  little  children 
impaled,  and  also  devoured  by  famishing  parents.  In 
holy  elevation,  and  with  tones  of  tenderness  which 
must  have  vibrated  upon  every  heart,  He  said — the  only 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


179 


words  He  spake  on  His  way  to  Calvary — ‘^Daughters 
of  Jerusalem,  weep  not  for  Me.’’  His  sacred  sufferings 
were  not  a popular  tragedy  for  street  bewailing.  They 
were  foreordained  and  foretold;  were  for  the  salvation 
of  man;  were  the  battle  field  on  which,  reaping  an 
eternal  victory  over  Satan  and  sin.  He  would  win  the 
world.  ^“But  weep  for  yourselves  and  for  your  children. 
The  days  are  coming’  in  the  which  offspring,  the  high- 
est blessing  of  marriage,  would  be  a curse,  and  when  a 
sudden  and  awful  death  would  be  desired.  These 
things,  which  they  are  doing,  are  a judgment  upon 
Me,  as  a vicarious  substitute  and  sin-  bearer.  And  if 
they  do  them  upon  Me,  the  flourishing,  fruit-bearing  tree, 
what  shall  become  of  the  dry,”  the  withered,  the  cut-off 
branches?  (John  xvi,  6.) 

These  words  relate  first  to  the  siege  of  Jerusalem.  Many 
of  the  young  women  there  could  live  till  the  siege,  which 
began  40  years  afterwards.  Their  children  would  en- 
dure the  miseries  of  those  awful  days.  But  the  terms 
have  a wider  scope  and  a more  awful  connection.  They 
point  forward  to  that  coming  time  when  the  unbelieving 
and  rebellious — the  dry  tree — shall  cry  out,  (Rev.  vi, 
16),  “Rock,  fall  on  us;  mountains,  cover  us;  for  the 
great  day  of  His  wrath  has  come,  and  who  shall  be 
able  to  stand?” 

At  the  place  designated  for  the  execution  the  pro- 
cession stopped.  For  1500  years  the  almost  uniform 
tradition  has  pointed  to  the  spot,  now  occupied  by  the 
church  of  the  Holy  Sepulclire,  as  the  place  of  the  cru- 
cifixion. But  the  tradition  is  strongly  disputed  by 


180 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Robinson,  and  many  other  eminent  Christian  scholars. 
It  seems  impossible  to  locate  the  spot  with  either  ac- 
curacy or  confidence.  All  we  know,  wfith  certainty, 
about  it,  is  (a)  the  name,  in 

Hebrew,  Golgotha, 

Greek,  Kranion, 

Latin,  Calvaria, 

English,  Calvary. 

These  words  mean  a ^‘skull.’’  It  is  not  called  the  place 
of  “skulls,”  as  if  it  was  the  usual  place  of  execution ; but  of 
“a  skull,”  perhaps,  to  designate  the  skull  or  conical  shape 
and  bare  aspect  of  the  place,  (b)  Jewish  law  required 
the  punishment  to  be  inflicted  outside  of  the  city,  as  a 
type  of  exclusion  from  human  society.  (Lev.  xxiv,  14; 
Heb.  xiii,  2;  Acts  vii,  58.)  Roman  law  required  that 
the  crucifixion  take  place  beyond  the  inhabited  streets, 
and  near  a road,  so  that,  and  where,  the  largest  number 
of  people  might  witness  it.  (Plautus  Miles^  ii,  4.) 
And  this  place  was  outside  of,  but  near,  the  city,  and 
on  a highway.  (Matt,  xxvii,  11;  Mark  xv,  29;  John 
xix,  17,  20.)  It  was  (c)  near  a garden,  in  which  was  a 
rock-hewn  sepulchre,  owned  by  a private  person.  (Matt, 
xxvii,  60;  John  xix,  41.)  And  (d)  it  was  a well-known 
spot,  ton  topon^  the  place,  called  KTanion^  Calvary. 

The  first  thing  done  was  to  make  ready  the  cross, 
called  by  Cicero,  “lignum  infelix,”  by  Livy,  “arbor  in- 
felix.”  It  was  usually  formed  of  four  pieces:  (a)  a 
strong  post,  sharpened  at  one  end,  and  carried  before- 
hand to  the  place  of  execution;  (b)  the  two  cross-pieces 
— the  perpendicular,  called  statilicum^  and  the  horizon- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


181 


tal,  called  antennce — which  were  carried  to  the  place  of 
death  by  the  victim;  and  (c)  a strong  horn-shaped  pin, 
called  sedile.  This  was  fastened  securely  through  the 
upright  beam.  Its  object  was  to  support  the  body, 
placed  on  it,  riding  fashion,  so  that  the  weight  would 
not  tear  it  away  from  the  hands.  The  cross-beam,  in 
the  Roman  cross — the  one  on  which  our  adorable  Lord 
was  crucified — was  nailed  a short  distance  from  the 
top;  and  on  the  perpendicular,  between  it  and  the  top, 
the  tablet  was  nailed.  The  upright  beam  was  securely 
nailed  to  the  post,  which  was  then  driven  so  deep  into 
the  ground  that  the  feet  of  the  crucified  were  only  a 
foot  or  two  above  the  earth. 

While  part  of  the  guard  prepared  the  cross,  the  rest 
prepared  the  victim  for  it.  Rough  hands  seized  His 
Sacred  Person,  and  stripped  Him  entirely  naked,  with  the 
same  indifference  with  which  they  had  stripped  hundreds 
of  death-doomed  men  before.  The  cloth  was  then,  tra- 
dition says,  tied,  let  us  hope  tenderly,  around  His  sacred 
loins.  Then,  or  just  before  being  stripped,  a drink  was 
offered  Him.  This  was  not  the  unintoxicating  jposca^ 
sour  wine,  the  common  drink  of  the  Roman  soldiers, 
and  which  they  gave  Him  afterwards,  but  a vinegar- 
wine,  mingled  with  myrrh,  and  which  had,  Galen  says,  a 
stupefying  effect.  It  was  a drink  prepared  by  Jerusalem 
ladies,  for  those  about  to  be  crucified.  And  this  custom 
of  pious  charity  was  founded,  so  the  Rabbins  say,  upon 
Prov.  xxxi,  6,  ^‘Give  strong  drink  to  him  that  is  ready 
to  perish.”  It  was  an  anodyne,  given  to  take  away 
all  sensibility  from  the  nerves,  and  thus  deaden  the 


182 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


pain.^  To  malefactors,  the  drink  was  a kindness,  to 
suffering  righteousness,  a severe  mortification.  In  offer- 
ing  up  Himself  a voluntary  sacrifice  to  God  for  man, 
Jesus  will  act  calmly  and  intelligently,  will,  to  know 
what  He  does  and  why,  keep  all  His  mental  and  moral 
powers  clear  and  pure.  He  will  drink  the  cup  given 
Him  by  His  Father,  and  so  rejects  this  intoxicating 
draught.  He  had  said,  ^ Jf  I be  lifted  up  from  the 
earth,  &c.”  Now  it  was  done.  The  centurion  gave 
the  order,  “m  crucem  tollere^^^  and  the  soldiers  seize  the 
sacred  Person,  and,  by  means  of  cords,  lift  it  up  to  the 
cross.  When  in  position.  His  arms  were  stretched  out 
upon  the  cross-beam,  and  securely  tied.  Then  both 
legs  were  bent  up  until  the  soles  of  the  feet  were  fiat 
on  the  upright  beam.  They  were  then  fastened,  and 
respectively  nailed,  as  were  the  hands.  (Luke  xxiv,  39; 
John  XX,  21,  27.)  And  as  blow  succeeded  blow,  what 
a thrilling  anguish  went  along  the  quivering  nerves! 
Yet  it  was  borne  without  the  slightest  impatience,  or 
an  unholy  word. 

In  the  next  succeeding  order  of  events  the  narratives 
differ.  But  the  comparison  of  these  with  each  other  leads 
me  to  the  conclusion  that  Jesus  was  crucified  alone,  by 
Himself.  Matthew,  Mark  and  John  all  say,  ^‘They  led 

cheap,  sour  wine,  was  the  common  drink  of  the  Roman 
soldiers.  When  myrrh,  and  other  intoxicating  ingredients,  were 
mingled  with  it,  it  became  a strong  drink,  which  was  prepared 
for,  and  given  to,  those  about  to  die.  In  Matt,  xxvii,  34,  it  is  the 
latter.  In  Matt,  xxvii,  43;  Luke  xxiii,  36;  John  xix,  29,  30,  it  is 
the  former.  Matthew,  looking  at  Ps.  Ixix,  20,  uses  the  word, 
“gall,”  and  this  he  does  in  order  to  render  the  fulfillment  of  the 
prophecy  more  manifest.  Mark,  looking  at  the  drink  historically, 
speaks  of  it  as,  “wine,  mingled  with  Myrrh,”  xv,  23.] 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


183 


Him  out,  &c. and  Jolm  adds,  bearing  His  cross, 
went  forth.’’  The  thieves  formed  no  part  of  the  pro- 
cession to  Calvary.  Luke’s  words  are,  hegouto  de  hai 
heteroi  duo^  Icakourgoi^  sun  autoo  anairetheenai^  ^Hwo 
others  also  were  led  out,  (he  does  not  say  when,)  with 
Him  to  be  lifted  up” — in  the  same  place,  and  by  His 
side.  In  neither  Luke  nor  John  is  there  an  adverb  of 
time,  as  to  when  it  was  done.  John  says,  hote^  when, 
&c.,  V.  23.  But  both  Matthew  and  Mark  place  it  after 
the  nailing  of  the  title  over  Jesus’  cross;  and  Matthews’ 
tote^  then,  is  decisive  on  this  point.  ‘‘They  set  up  over 
His  head,  &c.,”  then  were  the  two  thieves,  &c.  And 
this  is  their  first  allusion  to  them.  . 

Following  this  order,  we  have,  Jesus’  crucifixion, 
the  parting  of  His  garments,  the  title  nailed  over  Hi& 
head,  and  simultaneously  with  it  and  with  the  crucifix- 
ion of  the  two  thieves,  Jesus’  first  cry  from  the  cross. 

John  mentions,  as  significant,  that  Jesus  bowed  His 
head  just  before  He  died.  This  makes  it  quite  clear 
that  it  was  erect  up  to  that  time.  He  heard  and  saw 
all  that  passed  around  Him,  and  all  inflicted  grief  or 
shame  upon  His  holy  soul.  No  sooner  was  He  nailed 
fast  than  He  saw  the  first  derisive  action.  The  Roman 
law,  ‘‘de  honis  dainnaturum^'^  adjudged  the  clothes  of 
those  crucified  to  the  executioners.  The  tetradion^  de- 
tachment of  four  soldiers,  who  had  executed  Him,  took 
His  cap,  girdle,  sandals,  and  all  His  othei  garments 
but  His  coat,  and  divided  them  into  four  parts,  one  for 
each.  His  chiton — sometimes  the  long  inner  garment 
worn  next  to  the  skin,  but  here  the  outer  robe — tunic. 


184 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


was  seamless,  was  woven  of  woolen  yarn,  was  an  elegant 
and  costly  fabric — a sign  to  us,  that  Jesus,  in  His  dress, 
us  in  His  bearing  and  manners,  was  a gentleman — and 
to  Him  doubly  valuable,  because,  doubtless,  the  gift  of 
loving  hearts.  This  was  too  valuable  to  be  divided. 
The  soldiers  agreed  to  cast  lots  whose,  as  an  extra  por- 
tion, it  should  be.  Then  they  threw  the  dice,  which  one 
pulled  out  of  his  pocket,  for  the  choice  of  the  parts. 
This  settled,  they  threw  them  a second  time,  to  decide 
who  should  have  the  coat. 

By  this  act  Jesus  became  a sport  for  them!  And  what 
a humiliation  and  grief  was  it,  to  see  them  thus  disposing 
of  His  clothes,  that » necessity  of  life!  It  was  virtually 
saying,  ^‘You  have  no  authority  over  your  own  things! 
All  is  over  with  that  Man!’^  How  much  more  keen  the 
grief  and  humiliation  to  see  the  gift  which,  perhaps, 
woman’s  gentle  hands  had  made,  and  her  loving  heart 
had  given  (Luke  vii,  2,  3),  made  the  stake  of  rude  sol- 
diers’ dice!  But  in  this  they  fulfilled  what  long  before 
The  Spirit,  through  David,  had  foretold, would  be  done, 
(Ps.  xxii,  18),  and  thus  they  unconsciously  indicated 
that  He  was  truly  the  long-promised  Messiah. 

While  this  was  going  on,  there  was  a sudden  sensa- 
tion in  the  crowd.  Two  detachments,  of  four  soldiers 
each,  came  upon  the  ground,  each  with  a prisoner  to  be 
crucified.  And  John’s  narrative  (v.  19)  suggests  that 
with  them  came  one  from  Pilate,  bearing  a superscrip- 
tion to  put  over  Jesus’  head.  Koman  law  required  the 
accused,  or  the  crucarios^  to  bear  a tablet  to  the  place 
of  execution.  This,  doubtless,  was  done.  But  it  seems 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


185 


that  the  execution  of  the  two,  and  this  tablet,  were  an 
after  thought  of  Pilate’s — not  intended  as  an  insult  to 
Jesus,  hut  as  a lash  and  sting  to  the  Jews  for  making 
him  do  what  he  had  done.  He  had  ordered  that  one 
should  be  crucified  on  each  side  of  J esus.  And  the 
two  guards  at  once,  without,  perhaps,  a word  being 
spoken,  nail  each  cross  together,  drive  them  both  into  the 
ground,  lift  up*  the  men,  nail  each  to  his  cross,  and 
nail  above  the  head  the  name  of  the  criminal,  and  the 
crime  for  which  he  was  executed.  While  this  was  be- 
ing done  the  guard  of  Jesus,  mounting,  by  a ladder,  to 
the  top  of  His  cross,  nailed  to  it  a board,  on  whose 
white  gypsum  ground  were  the  large  black  letters^ 
which  told  out  with  the  name,  the  aitian^  accusation^ 
for  which  He  was  crucified.  There  stood  the  crosses  in 
a row,  with  the  naked  bodies  hanging  upon  them. 
These  tablets  proclaimed  the  degradation  of  the  victims. 
On  the  outer  crosses  was  the  word,  ‘^thief,”  with,  per- 
haps, the  prefix,  ^-Jewish.”  On  the  central  cross,  the 
large  letters — written  in  the  language  of  the  Jews,  so  of 
the  nation  and  of  religion,  of  the  Greeks,  so  of  culture 
and  universally  understood,  of  the  Eomans,  so  of  the  con- 
querors, and  of  law  and  government— proclaimed  to  the 
world,  THIS  IS  JESUS  OF  NAZAEETH,  THE 
KING  OF  THE  JEWS.  Thus  they  told  out  then,  and 
have  ever  since  been  telling,  to  the  world,  the  salvation 
of  the  cross  to  all  nations,  and  of  Jesus  to  the  Jews. 
Thus  Eome,  at  His  death — and  He  in  the  lowest  depths 
of  abasement — responded  to  the  voice  of  Persia  at  His 
birth.  He  was  born,  He  was,  in  the  three  chief  Ian- 


186 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


guages  of  earth,  proclaimed,  He  died.  He  will  come 
again.  The  King  of  the  J ews.  This  is  an  unconscious  pre- 
announcement of  the  time  when  they,  who  now  reject- 
ed, will  welcome  Him  as  such  (Matt,  xxiii,  39) ; and  as 
King,  will  He  also  be  received  by  all  nations.* 

But  this  was  not  all.  The  Sanhedrists  instantly  saw 
Pilate’s  bitter  irony,  in  the  juxtaposition — the  King  of 
Jewish  zealots  in  the  midst  of  Jewish  thieves.  They 
were  cut  to  the  quick.  At  once  the  chief  priests  of  tlie 
Jews — an  unusual  expression,  indicating  that  they 
acted  as  defenders  of  the  theocracy  against  this  so-called 
King — hastened  to  Pilate,  and  protested  against  the 
galling  insult.  They  asked  him  to  change  the  title  to, 
^^He  said  I am  King  of  the  Jews” — which  was  an  un- 
truth. Pilate  saw  how  the  title  stung.  His  reply  to 
their  remonstrance  was  strong  with  his  own  resentirient: 
Quod  scriptum  est^  est  scri^tum^  what  is  written,  is 
written.  His  revenge  was  complete. 

We  turn  to  the  central  cross,  and  comparing  Mark’s 
account  with  Luke’s,  and  these  two  with  the  other  two? 
we  see  how  keenly  Jesus  felt  the  added  ignominy 
heaped  upon  Him,  and  His  bearing  under  it.  On  His 
way  to  Gethsemane,  He  had  spoken  of  the  inevitable 
dei  must,  in  conneetion  with  the  accomplishment  of  all 
that  was  written  of  Ilkn;  and  had  quoted,  ‘‘And  He 
was  reckoned  among  the  transgressors.”  (Luke  xxii,  37 ; 

[*In  B,  C.  1 L.  the  words,  “In  letters  of  Greek,  and  Latin, 
and  Hebrew,”  are  wanting.  Lachmann  and  Alford  bracket  them. 
Tisch.,  Treg.  and  Mey.  omit  them.  But  they  are  found  in  all  the 
cursives,  and  in  Cod.  Sin.,  and  in  all  the  uncials.  Lange  retains 
them ; so  does  Godet. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


187 


Is.  liii,  12.)  That  prophetic  word  found  a reality  in 
the  fact  that  He  was  regarded  and  treated  as  one.  But 
it  found  its  special  significance  in  the  crucifixion  of  the 
two  thieves.  (Mark  xv,  28.)  It  is  true  this  verse  is 
wanting  in  A,  B,  0,  D,  X,  and  has  been  rejected  by 
Griesbach,  Tischendorf  and  Alford,  whose  remark, 
^^Mark  surely  quotes  from  prophecy/’  has  great  weight. 
But  it  is  found  in  P.  L.  1,  15,  69,  Cod.  Sin.,  in  the  ver- 
sions, and  in  Origin  and  Eusebius;  and  it  is  retained  by 
Lange  (Lange  in  loco,  note  3).  And  this  humiliation 
it  was — so  it  seems  from  Luke’s  narrative,  which  places 
the  two  facts  in  immediate  connection,  and  specially 
from  his  Ho  de^  h-t  Z,  they  crucified  them,  one  on  each 
side  of  Him,  l)ut  He  said — which  brought  forth  His  first 
cry  from  the  cross. 

So  soon  as  He  was  nailed  to  the  cross,  His  High 
Priestly  office  came  into  exercise,  and  the  seven  cries 
from  it  were  High  Priestly  words.  These  are  so  many 
windows  which  He  opened,  that  we  might  look  in  and  see 
how  He  thinks  and  feels.  The  first  three  relate  to 
those  around  Him,  His  murderers.  His  crucified  com-^ 
panion,  and  His  mother  and  friend  so  tenderly  beloved. 
The  next  four  relate  to  Himself — one  to  His  sufferings 
of  soul,  one  to  His  sufEerings  of  body,  one  to  the  com- 
pletion of  His  work,  and  the  last  one  expresses  His  trium- 
phant faith  in  death.  We  trace  through  them  His  ad- 
vance in  His  work,  and  mark  how  the  uncomplaining, 
patient  Sufferer,  the  righteous  and  obedient  Servant, 
the  steady  and  successful  Worker,  carries  it  through  to 
the  close.  He  possessed  His  soul  in  patience.  We  see 


188 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


iiilinite  compassion,  and  the  noblest  human  tenderness. 
He  overcame  their  murderous  hate  by  the  deepest,  most 
disinterested  and  holiest  love,  and  His  own  sufferings 
by  the  highest  self-sacrifice.  We  see  that,  save  once 
only,  the  consciousness  of  His  Sonship  was  undisturbed 
throughout  the  awful  and  protracted  agony.  We  are 
awed  by  the  majesty  of  Godhead,  we  are  ennobled  by 
the  grandeur,  and  subdued  by  the  tenderness,  of  man- 
hood, so  conspicuous  in  all  the  cries. 

He  speaks.  And  His  first  word  is  an  intercessory 
prayer:  ‘‘Father,  forgive  them,  for — with  literal  truth — 
they  know  not  what  they  do!’’  Forgive  whom?  The 
Council  which  pronounced,  Pilate  who  ordered,  and  the 
soldiers  who  executed,  the  sentence  of  death.  Forgive 
the  crime,  the  insults,  and  this  outrage,  of  crucifying 
the  thieves  by  My  side.  Forgive  all  comprehended  in 
the  “them.”  Being  intercessory,  it  was  answered. 
Otherwise  they  might  have  been  struck  dead  instantly. 
Here  was  the  beginning  of  that  triumph  over  the  suf- 
fering, cruelty,  shame  and  horror  of  the  hour  which 
converted  the  symbol  of  shame  into  a symbol  of  glory 
and  blessing.  We  listen  to  those  holy  accents.  We 
know  not  which  most  to  admire,  their  ineffable  sweet- 
ness, holy  earnestness,  or  exhaustless  love.  And  we 
enter  into  the  spirit  of  the  noble  verse  of  Yenantim 
Fortunatus: 

Grux  Jidelis^  inter  omnes 
Arl)or  una  nohilis  ! 

Nulla  talem  silva  profert 
Fronde^  flore^  genuine: 

Dulce  lignum^  dulces  clavi^ 

Dulce  pondus  mstinens. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


189 


“Faithful  cross ! above  all  other, 

One  and  only  noble  Tree ! 

None  in  foliage,  none  in  blossom, 

None  in  fruit  thy  peers  may  be: 

Sweetest  wood  and  sweetest  iron. 

Sweetest  weight  is  hung  on  thee.” 

The  soldiers,  with  the  centurion,  miles  qui  cruces 
assuehat^  then  sat  down  around  the  cross,  and  watched 
Him  there.  The  object  of  this  was  to  keep  friends 
from  taking  Him  down  before  death,  as  had  been  actu- 
ally done  to  a friend  of  Josephus,  who,  with  two  others, 
was  taken  down,  and  one  of  them  survived.  {Vit,  76.) 

It  was  now,  perhaps,  10  A.  M.,  and  for  two  hours 
there  poured  upon  Jesus’  sacred  Person  the  fierce  rays 
of  the  Judean  sun,  and  the  fiercer  words  of  insult  and 
scorn.  Of  His  physical  sufferings,  we  can  have  but 
the  faintest  conception.  The  unnatural  and  fixed  posi- 
tion of  the  body  hindered  the  circulation,  and  made  the 
muscles  weak  and  stiff.  Every  motion  sent  agonizing 
pain  along  the  nerves.  The  back,  already  swollen  by 
the  scourging,  was  blistered  by  the  burning  sun,  whose 
hot  beams  on  the  bare  and  thorn-crowned  head  also,  now 
burnt  it  like  fire.  The  hands  and  feet,  lacerated  by  the 
nails,  grew  more  and  more  infiamed.  The  head  be- 
came congested,  the  heart  oppressed  more  and  more. 
Burning  fever  made  the  thirst  incessant,  but  gave  no 
relief.  And  in  this  protracted  and  terrible  struggle  of 
life  with  death,  Jesus  supreme  health  and  exquisite 
sensibility  immeasurably  intensified  the  torture  which 
He  endured. 


[*From  his  Passion-hymn,  Pange  lingua.] 


190 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


The  sympathies  of  a common  humanity  should  have 
!ed  the  crowd  to  respect  the  Sufferer.  Partly  they  did. 
They  may  afterwards  have  joined  in  the  general  railing. 
But  ho  laos^  the  people  (the  ^^with  them”  of  Luke  xxiii, 
35,  is  not  genuine),  around  the  cross,  as,  and  just  after, 
it  was  put  up,  ‘^stood  theoroon^  beholding” — staring  in 
mute  bewilderment  and  pity  at  the  naked,  shivering 
form,  but,  apparently,  with  no  malevolent  feeling. 

But  Jesus  must  go  through  all  the  ignominy  and  re- 
proach, as  well  as  the  pain  of  the  cross.  looked,” 
said  He,  ^‘for  some  to  take  pity,  but  there  was  none.” 
The  vast  crowd  ^^compassed  Him  about  like  dogs.  They 
opened  their  mouths  against  Him,  as  a ravening  and 
roaring  lion.”  Prophecy  had  declared  that  they  would; 
history  declares  that  they  did. 

The  passers  by,  strangers,  perhaps,  who  had  come  up 
to  the  city  to  attend  the  feast,  and  who,  having  heard 
of  what  was  going  on,  had  come  out  to  see;  or  citizens, 
going  to  and  from  the  new  and  rapidly  growing  quar- 
ter of  the  city,  probably  both,  eblaspheemoun^  blas- 
phemed Him  both  by  act  and  word.  They,  in  token  of 
disdain,  and  with  passionate  and  malignant  joy,  wagged 
their  heads  at  Him.  To  insult,  to  express  the  utmost 
contempt  for.  Him,  they  shouted  in  His  ears  the  false 
testimony  against  Him:  ‘‘Ho  hatalouoon'^'^ — nomina- 
tive absolute — ^‘Thou  puller  down,  ho  oikodomoon^ 
Thou  builder  of  the  Temple  in  three  days,  save  Thy- 
self.” To  express  their  derision  of  His  claim  to  Divine 
Sonship,  they,  like  the  devil  in  the  wilderness,  chal- 
lenged Him  to  make  it  good  by  a present  miracle:  ^^If 


THE  HOLT  DEATH. 


191 


Thou  be  the  Son  of  God,  come  down  from  the  cross.” 
The  rulers  of  the  nation — the  chief  priests,  the  elders 
and  the  scribes — allow  not  the  mob  to  have  all  the 
pleasure  of  infamy.  “And  they  Omoioos  de  ka%  in  like 
manner,”  L as  the  passers  by,  “blasphemed  Him.”  But 
there  was  a seriousness  in  the  conduct  of  the  former 
which  was  wholly  absent  from  their  railing.  This, 
Matthew  and  Mark  describe  by  the  word,  empaizoo^  a 
verb  which  signifies  to  act,  and  to  treat  men,  like  chil- 
dren. Their  blasphemy  took  the  form  of  sportiveness. 
As  boys  poke — the  word  is  not  elegant,  but  it  accurate- 
ly translates  the  verb — fun  at  each  other,  they  poked 
fun  at  Jesus.  He  was  the  butt  of  their  laughter- 
provoking  ridicule.  They  seemed  to  have  been  inspired 
with  the  intermingled  frenzy  and  fury  of  hell.  They 
were  malignity  incarnated,  as  never  before  or  since. 
With  a refinement  of  cruelty  unparalleled,  except  in 
the  annals  of  religious  tyranny  and  hate,  they  turn  U]3 
the  nose  (Greek)^  scornfully  taunt  and  deride  Him. 
The  rabble  had  addressed  The  Sufferer  directly.  But 
the  rulers  speak  of  Him  in  the  third  person,  indicating, 
thereby,  that  He  was  utterly  unworthy  of  being  per- 
sonally addressed.  They  mocked  Him  among  them- 
selves, but  in  His  hearing,  the  insolence  of  one  sharp- 
ening the  wicked  wit  of  the  others.  As  in  their  intense 
hatred,  they  heaped  insult  after  insult  upon  the  de- 
fenseless, suffering,  dying  Man,  each  strove  to  outdo 
the  others  in  bitter,  burning,  blasphemous  mockery. 
They  repeat  before  the  Crucified  what  they  had  said  to 
the  Accused,  and  add  to  it  out  of  their  storehouse  of 


192 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


hate.  saved  others,  did  He?  Yet  He  cannot  save 

Himself.”  “He  is  the  Chosen  of  God,  is  He?  Then 
let  Him  show  it  by  saving  Himself.”  “King  of  Israel, 
too,  is  He?  He  says  He  is,  and  that  He  wants  ns,  and  we 
want,  to  believe  that  He  is  King.  Well,  let  Him  now 
come  down  from  the  cross,  and  we  will  believe  Him.” 
“He  trusted  in  God,  did  He?  He  is.  He  said,  the  Son  of 
God.  Well,  if  He’s  God’s  Son,  if  God  will  have  Him, 
will  take  pleasure  in  Him,  let  Him  deliver  Him  now.” 

They  see  not  that  their  frenzy  shows  their  defeat, 
that  in  their  taunt,  “He  saved  others,”  they  uncon- 
sciously proclaim  His  power  and  Messiahship,  that, 
without  designing  it,  they  proclaim  His  greatness.  But 
they  do  see  that  they  have  aroused  the  coarser  nature 
of  the  soldiers  to  join  them  in  the  sport.  To  the  mock 
eries  of  the  crowd  and  to  the  inhuman  malignity  of  the 
Sanhedrists,  their  brutalities  must  now  be  added.  Up 
to  this  point  they  had  been  quietly  sitting  down  attend- 
ing to  their  duty  of  watching  the  cross.  Now  seized 
with  the  infection,  they,  too,  must  have  their  share  in 
the  infamy.  They,  too,  make  fun  of  Him — empaizoo — 
both  by  act  and  word.  They  treat  Him  as  a play- 
King.  They  come  up  to  the  cross,  and  present  to  Him 
their  common,  as  if  it  were  a royal,  cup.  They  hand 
Him  their  common  drink,  oxos  (see  note,  page  182),  and 
then,  drink  it  perhaps,  as  a toast  to  His  royalty. 
They,  without  knowing  the  import  of  what  they  say, 
use  the  words,  “If  Thou  be  the  King  of  the  Jews,  save 
Thyself. 

Even  the  two  thieves  are  seized  with  the  madness  of 


THE  HOLY  DEATH, 


193 


the  hour.  As  if  to  wreak  on  Him  vengeance  for  their 
sufferings,  or,  by  it,  to  mitigate  their  j3ains,  to  auto 
ooneidison^  they  reproached  Him  with  the  same  thing. 
There  can  be  no  sympathy  between  honesty  and  theft, 
between  purity  and  impurity.  And  holiness  in  its 
white  robes,  and  chastity  with  its  clean  hands,  were 
calumniated  by  the  malignant  witticisms  of  the  worth- 
less, and  hissed  at  by  thieves.  There  is  something 
deeply  solemn  in  this.  These  men  were  approaching 
the  portals  of  eternity  with  scoffs  on  their  lips,  and 
taunts  of  the  Blessed  One  in  their  mouths ! 

All  were  mocking  now — the  mob — the  rulers — the 
soldiers — the  thieves.  And  if  this  was  not  hell  let  loose 
on  earth,  and  raging  around  The  Holy  One  of  God,  I 
know  not  where  to  find  it  this  side  its  lurid  fires.  This 
was,  emphatically,  ‘fihe  hour  and  power  of  darkness.’^ 

Jesus  had  felt  the  stigma  of  the  manner  of  His  ar- 
rest: “Be  ye  come  out  as  against  a thief?”  But  that  was 
slight  compared  with  this.  Most  acutely,  now.  His  holy 
soul  felt  all  the  venom  and  gall  that  dashed,  wave  after 
wave,  over  it.  His  physical  sufferings  must  have  been 
forgotten  in  this  insulting,  trampling,  crushing  of  His 
holy  love.  Again  and  again,  through  life,  had  Satan  as- 
saulted Him,  and  failed.  How  He  has  come  to  see  if 
He  cannot  find  something  in  Him — some  point  on 
which  sin  may  fasten,  some  opening  through  which  a 
shaft  can  pierce,  which  will  call  forth  unholy  resent- 
ment against  this  storm  of  obliquy.  He  uses  this  surg- 
ing, seething  mass,  which,  mad  with  the  intoxication 
of  hate  and  jest,  hooted  and  reeled  around  the  quiver- 


194 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ing  sacrifice.  But  this  battering  ram  fails  to  make  any 
impression  upon  the  walls  of  holiness.  When  the  at- 
tack ceased,  from  sheer  exhaustion,  the  Champion  of  the 
race  was  found  unhurt  and  serene.  His  love  to  God  and 
man  was  beaming  forth  as  brightly  as  before.  His  fidel- 
ity to  the  truth  and  righteous  had  not  been  even  dis- 
turbed. He  can  go  on  to  finish  the  work  given  Him 
to  do.  Satan,  to  his  unutterable  dismay,  has  perceived 
his  mistake.  He  has  come,  has  tried,  has  found  noth- 
ing in  Him.  He  was  driven,  defeated,  from  the  field. 

Jesus’  bearing  throughout  this  day  shows  the  highest 
manliness.  The  sense  of  utter  loneliness  which  He 
had  felt  during  the  agony  in  the  garden,  was  with  Him 
still.  That  confiict  and  victory  prepared  Him  for  this  trial. 
Rightly  to  meet  the  brutalities,  scoffs  and  sneers,  which 
rained  upon  Him  now,  showed  a heroism  manlier  far 
than  that  required  to  face  a cannon.  Yet  from  the 
moment  of  the  first  insult  down  to  the  time  when  His 
thorn-crowned  brow  was  bowed  in  death,  not  the  slightest 
sign  of  fear  or  weakness,  or  of  unholy  passion  appeared. 
Though  unsupported  by  others,  He,  throughout  that 
trying  day,  exhibited  the  sublimest  courage.  It,  like 
His  manliness,  and  all  the  other  elements  and  attributes 
of  His  character,  as  seen  in  His  whole  bearing,  is  with- 
out a stain.  All  are  positively  Godlike.  So  was  His 
great  victory  over  the  fury  of  the  mob,  through  Hi  > 
perfect  victory  over  Himself.  And  this  prepared  Him  for 
His  first  victory  over  others. 

After  man  and  Satan  had  failed  in  their  efforts,  Je- 
sus began  to  show  what  victorious  power  there  is 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


195 


grace.  To  all  the  mockery  of  His  inability  to  save 
Himself,  He  gave,  in  the  salvation  of  the  penitent 
thief,  an  answer  that  is  unanswerable. 

Whatever  the  solution,  the  seeming  discrepancy  be- 
tween Luke,  and  Matthew  and  Mark,  is  not  removed  by 
Alford’s  ^^Matthew’s  and  Mark’s  statement  is  the  less 
accurate.”  Matthew  says  both  reviled.  And  he  is  as 
worthy  of  confidence  as  Luke.  Nor  is  it  removed  by 
saying,  with  Godet,  that  the  two  latter  writers  were 
ignorant  of  the  change  in  the  one  who  became  penitent. 
How  does  Godet  know  this?  Nor  is  Lange’s  explana- 
tion more  satisfactory:  ‘‘That  one  was  a nobler  mille- 
narian,  having  a heart  filled  with  enthusiastic  hopes, 
which  he  resigned,  and  then  turned  to  the  dying  Christ; 
while  the  other  was  a despairing  spirit,  who  blasphemed 
the  dying  Lamb.”  There  is  not  a syllable  in  the  narra- 
tive that  warrants  the  supposition.  They  were  not 
zealots,  nor  seditious.  In  this  they  would  have  gloried; 
and  the  one  would  not  have  confessed  guilt.  They 
were  simply  common  thieves,  and  were  executed  for, 
not  a political,  but  for  a moral  crime.  The  most  satisfac- 
tory solution  is  the  one  commonly  held,  that,  at  the  first, 
both  were  actuated  by  the  same  spirit,  and  mocked, 
but  that  one  of  them  was,  while  in  the  midst  of  his  re- 
vilings,  suddenly  converted  by  the  power  of  sovereign 
grace,  of  whose  actings  this  case  is  a grand  illustration. 

This  fact  is  as  comprehensible  as  was  the  sudden  con- 
version of  3000  on  Pentecost,  of  Saul  of  Tarsus,  and  of 
Brownlow  North,  who  was  instantly  arrested  by  grace 
while  at  a gambling  table.  Though  the  first  experi- 


196 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


ence  of  penitence,  the  rebuke  of  his  companion,  is  not 
normal,  yet  it  is  psychological  possible;  and  that  it  actu- 
ally occurred,  Luke’s  narrative  plainly  shows.  The  writ- 
er is  acquainted  with  a fact  which  illustrates  this  one. 
While  a series  of  meetings  was  going  on  in  a certain 
city,  the  preacher  conducting  them,  was  one  evening 
addressing  a crowd  on  the  street.  While  speaking,  he 
was  suddenly  interrupted  by  the  rush  of  the  rabble. 
They  jeered,  and  hooted,  and  howled.  They  pelted 
him  with  mud  and  pebbles.  He  stood  his  ground 
firmly,  but  neither  exhibited  nor  felt  any  resentment.  A 
prominent  infidel,  passing  by,  stopped  to  watch  the 
proceedings.  And  he  was  so  profoundly  impressed 
with  the  preacher’s  patience,  that,  as  he  expressed  it 
himself,  he  suddenly  felt,  ^‘that  man’s  religion  is  di* 
vine.”  He  went  directly  to  the  meetings — the  first 
time  he  had  been  in  a house  of  worship  for  many  years 
— remained  for  prayer,  and  in  the  inquiry  room  told 
his  story,  and  left  for  his  home  that  night  rejoicing  in 
the  Lord. 

So  was  it  with  the  penitent  thief.  He  saw  and  heard 
wdiat  was  going  on  around  him.  That  holy  calm,  that 
heavenly  love  that  beamed  on  Jesus’  face  during  that 
storm  of  railing,  drew  him  to  Him.  He  heard  the 
cries,  “King  of  the  Jews,”  “Son  of  God,”  “the  Christ,” 
“He  saved  others.”  Misgivings  first,  then  questions 
rushed  ttiroutrh  his  mind.  Conscience  be^un  to  work 
As  Christ’s  majesty  rose  before  him,  so  did  his  own 
sins.  The  solemnities  of  eternity,  and  of  his  own  total 
uupreparedness,  came  to  view.  He  and  his  comrade 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


197 


had  ooneideson^  mocked.  (Matt.,  .Mark.)  But  while 
the  other  sunk  still  deeper  in  sin,  and  eblaspheamei^ 
blasphemed,  Thou  be  the  Christ,  save  Tlijself  and 
us,”  this  one  ceased  his  mockery.  Then  burst  forth,  sud- 
denly, from  his  lips  words  startlingly  strange.  These 
show  what  flashes  of  truth  were  struggling  with  the 
darkness  in  his  soul,  what  deep,  what  subduing  convic- 
tions were  working  in  his  conscience,  what  new,  what 
ennobling  desires  and  emotions  were  forming  in  his 
heart.  And  they  show,  also,  the  agencies  in  this  great 
work  of  transformation.  The  first  word  was  a rebuke 
of  his  companion  for  blaspheming  One  suffering  the 
same  punishment  as  themselves:  ‘‘Dost  not  thou  fear 
God,  seeing  thou  art  in  the  same  condemnation?”  In 
the  “en  to  hrimati  ei^  thou  art  in  the  same  condemna- 
tion,” he  points  out  the  likeness  of  moral  relation  be- 
tween them  both  and  the  railers  around.  All  are  alike 
in  the  guilt.  And  in  the  ‘‘oude  phodee  su  ton  Theon^ 
hoti^  dost  not  even  thou  fear  God,  for,  &c.,”  he  points  out 
the  difference  of  moral  situation  between  the  other 
railers  and  themselves.  They  are  yet  living.  You  are 
are  just  now  to  appear  before  God.  The  second  word 
attested  his  own  self-condemnation:  “We,  indeed,  just- 
ly; for  we  are  receiving  the  due  reward  of  our  deed.” 
The  third  word,  “This  Man  hath  done  nothing  amiss,” 
shows  that  he  was  suddenly  struck  with  the  contrast 
between  the  holiness  which  shone  in  Jesus,  and  their 
own  badness.  It,  while  attesting  His  innocency,  places 
an  immeasurable  distance  between  Him  and  them  both. 
He,  a common  thief,  thus  gave  to  Him  the  last  testi- 


198 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


mony  that  He  received  on  that  day,  as  Pilate’s  wife,  a Ro- 
man matron  of  distinction,  had  given  to  Him  the  first; 
and  he  had  a clearer  insight  into  His  character  than 
she.  His  faith — whose  ripening  was  as  rapid  as  its 
springing  up  was  sudden — rose  superior  to  all  the 
darkness  and  difficulties.  His  understanding  had  been 
enlightened  by  Jesus’  address  to  God.  He  saw  in  the 
name,  ^^Father,”  the  intimate  relation  between  Him  and 
God.  His  heart  and  conscience  had  been  taken  hold 
of  by  the  meekness  and  spirit  of  forgiveness  in  His 
prayer.  He  saw.  He  proclaimed,  Jesus’  Lordship.  His 
faith  pierced  the  future.  • He  saw,  he  proclaimed  Jesus’ 
coming  again  with  divine  splendor  and  royal  majesty. 
There  he  rested.  Him,  he  received  as  his  Saviour. 
With  Him  now,  the  holy  Sufferer  by  his  side,  and  the 
coming  King,  his  soul  was  occupied.  Him,  he  received  as 
his  Saviour  and  Lord.  Lie  cast  himself  wholly  on  His 
sovereign  mercy  and  love.  Turning,  so  far  as  He  could, 
towards  Him,  he  exclaimed,  “Lord,”  or  “Jesus,”  [kurie^ 
is  wanting  in  B.  0.  D.  Sin.  &c.  B.  C.  L.  Sin.,  and  cer- 
tain versions  have  leesou^  and  this  is  adopted  by  Alford 
and  Lange),  “remember  me  when  Thou  comest,  not, 
eis  into,  or  for,  but,  en  in  Thy  Kingdom” — at  Thy 
coming  in  Thy  Kingdom. 

This  faith  exhibits  the  most  amazing  depth  and 
strength.  It  apprehended  the  Crucified  as  King.  This 
prayer  is  one  of  the  boldest  and  most  surprising  ever 
uttered.  To  it,  with  its  unreserved  confession,  Jesus 
replied — His  second  word  from  the  cross — “Verily,  I say 
unto  thee.  To-day” — as  if  to  show  the  nearness  of  the 


THE  HOLT  DEATH. 


199 


promised  happiness,  in  contrast  with  the  future  of  the 
prayer — ^‘thou  shalt  be  with  Me  in  Paradise” — -the 
Garden  of  God.  (2  Cor.  xii,  4;  Kev.  ii,  7.)  Thus  He 
showed  Himself  mighty  to  save.  Thus  He  opened 
heaven  to  an  immortal  soul,  and  gathered,  in  dying,  the 
first  victory  of  His  death.  Thus,  with  this  most  start- 
ling surprise  of  that  day  of  surprises,  He  answered  the 
challenge  of  His  foes.  We  gaze  upon  the  scene,  and 
our  souls  are  filled  with  ecstatic  delight.  We  feel,  we 
sing,  concerning  His  cross, 

“With  fragrance  dropping  from  each  bough, 

Sweeter  than  sweetest  nectar,  thou : 

Decked  with  the  fruit  of  peace  and  praise, 

And  glorious  with  Triumphal  lays : — 

Hail,  Altar ! Hail,  O Victim ! Thee 
Decks  now  Thy  Passion’s  Victory; 

Where  Life  for  sinners  death  endured, 

And  life,  by  death,  for  man  procured.” 

The  sun  was  nearing  noon.  Jesus  was  about  to  un- 
dergo a strange,  and  the  most  distressful,  phase  of  Hi& 
sufierings.  But  just  before  this  began,  the  next  record- 
.edj  and  a most  affecting,  incident  occurred.^ 

John,  of  whom  we  have  lost  sight  since  the  trial  be.^ 
fore  Annas,  is  seen  standing  near  the  cross.  He  may 
have  been  a witness  of  the  scenes  at  the  Pretorium.  If 
so,  so  soon  as  Jesus  was  given  over  to  His  foes,  he  hur- 
ried to  the  house  where  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus,  was 
staying,  and  told  her  all.  She,  with  other  women,  ac- 
companied him  to  Calvary.  And  so  soon,  so  it  seems, 

meta  touto  of  John' (v.  28),  is  to  be  taken  in  its  widest 
sense.  After  this^  but  not  immediately.  Godet,  Alford,  Meyer.] 


200 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


as  the  tumult  had  somewhat  subsided,  she,  John,  and 
some  other  friends  approached  as  near  as  they  could, 
and  stood  beside  the  cross.  With  the  Virgin  mother 
were  her  sister,  Salome,  and  Mary  Magdalene.  (Alford, 
and  Lange,  on  John  xix,  25.  For  another  view,  see  re- 
marks Bib,  Diet,  Art.  Mary.)  We  can  readily  conceive 
what  thoughts  and  emotions  would  stir  the  hearts  of 
three  of  the  group.  But  in  the  heart  of  the  central 
figure  there  was  a depth,  a sacredness,  an  intensity  of 
grief,  which  finds  a voice  in  that  most  pathetic  of  hymns, 
^^The  Stabat  Mater, but  which  none  can  fully  either 
experience  or  portray.  For,  as  she  stood  by  the  cross 
and  gazed  on  her  suffering  Son,  she  was  experiencing 
that  agony  which  Simeon  had  foretold  her,  when  Jesus 
lay  a babe  in  her  arms:  ^‘Yea,  a sword  shall  pierce 

through  thine  own  soul,  also.”  (Luke  ii,  35.)  Hers 
was  a sorrow  too  deep  to  be  sounded,  too  delicate  to 
be  analyzed,  by  any  one  else  than  herself. 

['^''The  Stabat  Mater  was  written  by  Jacobus  De  Benedictis,  in 
the  13tli  Century.  The  melody  of  the  verse  is  faultless.  It  is 
rightly  called  one  of  the  great  hymns  of  the  church.  The  first 
line  of  John  xix,  25,  in  the  Vulgate,  Stabat  juxta  crucem^  Mat&r 
is  the  first  line  of  the  hymn.  The  hymn  in  the  original, 
and  Lord  Lindsay’s  translation,  are  given  below : 

STABAT  MATER.  THE  STABAT  MATER 


JACOBUS  DE  BENEDICTIS. 

Stabat  Mater  dolorosa, 

Juxta  crucem  lacrymosa, 
Dum  pendebat  filius. 
Cujus  animam  gementem, 
Oontristatam  et  dolentem, 
Pertransivit  gladius. 


LORD  LINDSAY. 

By  the  Cross,  sad  vigil  keeping, 
Stood  the  mournful  mother 
weeping. 

While  on  it  the  Saviour  hung; 
In  that  hour  of  deep  distress. 
Pierced  the  sword  of  bitterness 
Through  her  heart  with  sor- 
row wrung. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


201 


As  slie  thus  stood  gazing,  in  silent  agony,  on  Her 
Son,  He  saw  her.  It  was  their  last  look  on  each  other. 
All  His  wealth  of  filial  affection  responded  to  her  ma- 
ternal woe.  His  relation  to  her  was  about  to  pass  into 
a higher  form.  He  had  been  her  comfort  and  support. 
What  He  was  about  to  do  would  not  hinder  her  rela- 
tionship to  His  brothers.  But  they  did  not  as  yet 
believe  in  Him.  (John  vii,  5.)  And,  while  unconvert- 
ed, they  could  not  have  any  sympathy  with  her  in 
the  region  where  she  henceforth  would  dwell.  There 
was  one,  however,  who  could — her  nephew,  the  disciple 
whom  He  loved.  They  were  standing  together.  Jesus 
spake;  and  His  words — His  third  from  the  cross — show, 
along  with  sweet  and  tender  filial  love,  that  profound 
and  perfect  calm  of  spirit,  so  requisite  to  meet  the 
abysmal  woe  which  He  was  Just  about  to  experience.  To 
shield  her  from  the  indignities  which  she  mi2:ht  receive^ 
if  known,  to  express  her  helplessness  and  need  of  sup- 
port, and  especially  her  high  dignity  as  His  mother, 


O quam  tristis  et  afflicta, 
Fuit  ilia  benedicta, 

Mater  unigeniti ! 

Quae  mcerebat  et  dolebat, 

Pi  a mater,  dum  videbat 
I^ati  poenas  inclyti. 

Quis  est  homo  qui  non  fleret, 
Christi  matrem  si  videret 
In  tanto  supplicio  ? 

Quis  posset  non  contristari 
Piam  matrem  contemplari 
Dolentem  cum  filio  ? 


Oh ! how  sad,  how  woe-begone 
Was  that  ever-blessed  one. 
Mother  of  the  Son  of  God ! 
Oh!  what  bitter  tears  she  shed 
Whilst  before  her  Jesus  bled 
’Neath  the  Father’s  penal  rod ! 

Who’s  the  man  could  view  un- 
moved 

Christ’s  sweet  mother,  whom 
He  loved, 

In  such  dire  extremity  ? 

Who  his  pitying  tears  withhold, 
Christ’s  sweet  mother  to  behold 
Sharing  in  His  agony  ? 


202 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


He  addressed  her  as  ‘^wonian,”  as  He  had  done  at  the 
marriage  in  Cana,  of  Galilee,  three  years  before: 
‘^Woman,  behold  thy  Son!” 

Then  addressing  John,  He  said, 

‘^Behold  thy  mother!” 

The  succeeding  scenes  would  be  too  much  for  her 
mother  heart.  Away  from  there,  and  in  silence,  could 
she  best  prepare  for  the  final  blow.  At  once  John  led 
her  to  his  own  home,  in  the  city,  the  rest  of  the  group 
following  to  the  outside  of  the  crowd,  where  they  stood 
^‘beholding  afar  off,”  until  the  awful  tragedy  was  ended. 
(Matt,  xxvii,  56.)  And  John,  so  soon  as  he  had  seen 
the  Virgin  safely  sheltered,  returned  to  Calvary,  and 
staid  by  his  Master  until  He  died.  (John  xix,  27,  34,  35.) 

The  kingdom  of  nature  and  of  grace  are,  in  the  pro- 
foundest  sense,  one,  and  the  sympathy  between  them  is 
intense.  Geological  and  spiritual  developments  move 
on  in  preparatory,  or  in  parallel,  lines.  All  great  epochs 
in  the  kingdom  of  grace  are  preceded  by,  or  accom- 
panied with,  great  miracles,  or  extraordinary  phenome- 
na in  the  kingdom  of  nature.  So  was  it  in  the  times 


Pro  peccatis  suae  gentis, 
Vidit  Jesum  in  tormentis, 
Et  flagellis  subdituin. 
Vidit  suum  dulcem  natum, 
Morientem,  desolatum, 
Dum  emisit  spiritum. 

Eia  mater,  fons  amoris, 

Me  sentire  vim  doloris 
Fac,  ut  tecum  lugeam. 
Fac  ut  ardeat  cor  meum, 

In  amando  Christum  Deum 
Ut  illi  complaceam. 


For  the  Father’s  broken  law, 
Mary  thus  the  Saviour  saw 
Sport  of  human  cruelties — 
Saw  her  sweet,  her  only  Son, 
God-forsaken  and  undone. 

Die  a sinless  sacritice  I 

Mary  mother,  fount  of  love. 
Make  me  share  tin"  sorrow, move 
All  my  soul  to  sympathy! 
Make  my  heart  within  me  glow 
With  the  love  of  Jesus — so" 
Shall  I find  acceptancy. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


203 


of  Moses  and  Elijah.  So  was  it  at  the  birth,  and  dur- 
ing the  life,  of  Jesus.  So  will  it  be  just  before,  and  at,  His 
second  coming.  So  was  it  now.  Owing  to  the  pro- 
found connection  existing  on  the  one  side  between  Je- 
sus and  humanity,  and  on  the  other,  between  humanity 
and  nature — for  Jesus  is  the  soul  of  humanity,  as  hu- 
manity is  the  soul  of  the  external  world — extraordinary 
cosmical  phenomena  must  occur  at  such  a world-histori- 
cal epoch  as  His  death.  This  anticipation,  founded  on 
facts  in  the  past,  is  answered  in  the  darkening  of  the 
earth  and  sun,  the  rending  of  the  veil,  the  quaking  of 
the  earth,  the  opening  of  the  graves,  and  in  the  coming 
forth  alive  of  many  from  the  realms  of  death. 

The  first  phenomenon  occurred  at  high  noon,  and  con- 
tinued three  hours.  The  sun  stood  highest,  and  the  day 
was  brightest.  Suddenly  a darkness  egeneto  (all  the  Syn.), 
came  on,  (this  is  the  meaning  of  this  verb  as  used. 
Matt,  viii,  24,  16,  to  describe  the  movements  of  natural 
phenomena),  pasan  (Lk.  oleen)  teen  geen^  over  all 
the  land.”  This  phrase  describes  the  Holy  Land.  (Luke 


Sancta  Mater,  istud  agas, 
Crucifixi  fige  plagas 
Cordi  meo  valide. 

Tui  Nati  vulnerati, 

Tam  dignati  pro  me  pati, 
Pcenas  mecum  divide. 

Fac  me  vere  tecum  flere, 
Crucifixo  condolere, 

Donee  ego  vixero. 

Juxta  crucem  tecum  stare, 
Et  tibi  me  sociare 
In  planctu  desidero. 


Print,  O Mother,  on  my  heart, 
Deeply  print  the  wounds,  th® 
smart 

Of  my  Saviour’s  chastisement ; 
He  who,  to  redeem  my  loss. 
Deigned  to  bleed  upon  the 
cross — 

Make  me  share  His  punish- 
ment. 

Ever  with  thee,  at  thy  side, 
’JSTeath  the  Christ, theCruci tied, 
Mournful  mother,  let  me  be  I 
By  the  cross  sad  vigil  keeping. 
Ever  watchful,  ever  weeping. 
Thy  companion  constantly  1 


204 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


xxi,  21.)  And  to  it,  with  Jerusalem  as  its  center,  it 
has  here  distinctive  reference.  There  tlie  darkness  was 
the  deepest.  But  it  has  a wider  significance,  as  we 
learn  from  heathen  writers.  (See  Lange,  on  pg. 

525.)  It  extended  to  all  parts  of  the  earth,  where  the 
sun  was  above  the  horizon.  It  was  not  caused  by  an 
eclipse,  for  an  eclipse  of  the  sun  cannot  occur  when  the 
moon  is  full.  It  was  not  over  the  sun,  nor  in  the  dis- 
tant regions  of  the  universe,  but  over  the  earth.  Nor 
was  it  a miracle  in  the  ordinary  meaning  of  that  word. 
It  was  an  extraordinary  phenomenon,  arising  from  some 
atmospheric  or  cosmical  cause,  and  a miracle  only  in  its 
extent,  duration  and  object;  the  former,  in  that  it  came 
from  physical  causes,  the  latter,  in  that  these  causes 
were  then  moving  obediently  to  the  active  will  of  the 
Creator.  Dark,  heavy,  waterless  clouds  covered  the 
earth  like  a pall.  So  dense  were  they  that,  as  a conse- 
quence— Icai^  and,  is  used  in  its  causative  sense — the 
sun  was  darkened,  as  it  will  be  just  before  the  second 


Virgo  virginum  prseclara, 
Mihi  jam  non  sis  amara; 

Fac  me  tecum  plangere. 

Fac  ut  portem  Christi  mortem 
Passionis  fac  consortem, 

Et  plagas  recolere. 

Fac  me  plagis  vulnerari, 

Fac  me  cruce  inebriari, 

Et  cruore  filii. 

Inflammatus  et  accensus, 

Per  te,  Virgo,  sim  defensus, 

In  die  judicii. 


Maid  of  maidens,  undefiled. 

Mo  her  gracious,  mother  mild, 
Melt  my  heart  to  weep  with 
thee ! 

Crown  me  with  Christ’s  thorny 
wreath. 

Make  me  comfort  of  His  death, 
Sharer  of  His  victory. 

Never  from  the  mingled  tide 

Flowing  still  from  Jesus’  side, 
May  my  lips  inebriate  turn; 

And  when  in  the  day  of  doom, 

Lightning-like  He  rends  the 
tomb. 

Shield,  oh  shield  me,  lest  I. 
burn! 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


205. 


coming  of  Jesus.  (Matt,  xxiv,  29.)  So  dark,  elsewliere, 
was  it,  that  ^‘tlie  stars  shone  in  the  heavens.’’  (Phlegon, 
the  chronicler  of  the  Emperor  Adrian.)  But  around 
the  cross  the  darkness  was  too  dense  for  even  that.  All 
there  were  affected  by  the  sombre  hue  over  nature. 
All  scoffing,  gibes  and  blasphemy  ceased.  Those  who 
could,  fled  affrighted,  to  their  homes.  (Luke,  vs.  48.) 
Those  who  had  to  stay,  were  awed  into  silence.  The 
soldiers  guarded  the  cross  more  closely.  The  faithful 
women  stood  still  in  their  lonely  grief.  One  of  the 
thieves  dared  no  longer  blaspheme.  The  other,  happy 
in  the  sense  of  pardoned  sin,  was  musing  on  the  won- 
drous love  of  God.  And  the  One  on  the  central  cross 
— if  we  may  anticipate  the  information  which  will  be 
furnished  us  by  the  cry — was  entering  into  the  court  of 
judgment.  The  earthquake’s  groans,  and  the  rending 
of  the  rocks,  were  nature’s  sympathy  with  her  expiring 
Lord,  and  the  opening  of  the  graves,  and  coming  forth 
of  the  dead,  were  her  response  to  His  power.  But  the 
darkness  was  the  act  of  the  Eternal  Throne,  intended 
especially  for  Him.  It  was  the  mantle  which  the 
Judge  threw  ever  His  naked  form  in  that,  the  supreme^ 
the  solemn,  hour  of  His  life.  It  was  the  Judge  shut- 
ting the  door  behind  Him,  so  that  no  one  could  see  or 
know  what  was  going  on,  while  He  was  meeting  the 


Fac  me  cmce  custodiri,  So  the  shadow  of  the  tree 

IVArte  Christi  prsemuniri,  Where  thy  Jesus  bled  for  me 

Confoveri  gratia.  Still  shall  be  my  fortalice ; 

Quando  corpus  morietur,  So  when  flesh  and  spirit  sever 

Fac  ut  animse  donetur  Shall  I live,  thy  boon,  for  ever 

Paradisi  gloria.  In  the  joys  of  Paradise  I 


206 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


question  of  the  ages  before  the  tribunal  of  God.  And 
it  was  also  a visible  representation  of  the  state  of  Jesus’ 
soul  during  this  period  of  His  sufferings. 

During  three  hours  this  dense  darkness  and  awful 
silence  continued.  But  as  nature’s  clock  struck  three, 
the  by-standers  were  startled  and  awed  by  a loud  cry, 
which  went  up  like  a pillar  of  smoke  beneath  the  dark- 
ened sky,  and  whose  sound  indicated  that  it  came  from 
the  central  cross.  ‘‘Aneboeesen  {eboeesen^  Mark)  ho 
leesous  phoonee  megalee^Se^u.^  cried  with  a loud  voice.” 
The  verb  signifies,  in  classic  Greek,  to  cry  out:  an 

appraising,  applauding  aloud,  as  a sign  of  joy;  a lament- 
ing aloud,  as  a sign  of  grief;  a calling  aloud,  to  awaken 
attention;  but  never  to  shriek,  which  is  a sign  of  ter- 
ror or  distraction  of  mind.  In  the  New  Testament — 
and  we  give  all  the  places  where  the  verb  is  found — it 
indicates  (a)  terror.  Acts  viii,  7;  or  (fi)  joy.  Gal.  iv,  27; 
or  (c)  a call  for  help,  Luke  xviii,  7,  38 ; Acts  xvii,  6 ; 
or  (d)  generally,  to  call  or  cry  aloud.  Matt,  iii,  3 ; Mark 
i,  1;  XV,  8;  Luke  iii,  4;  ix,  38;  John  i,  23;  Acts  xxi, 
24.  In  none  of  them  is  there  the  idea  of  shriekino^ 
found.  Jesus  did  not  shriek,  but  cried  out,  mth  a loud 
voice.  And  this  cry  was  strong,  indicating  that  His 
physical  strength  had  not  been  exhausted.  It  was  loud, 
and  was  heard  by  all.  It  was  distinct,  and  each  sylla- 
ble was  understood.  All  its  tones  were  impressive, 
and  stamped  every  word — as  was  every  word  from  the 
cross  stamped — indelibly  upon  the  memory  and  heart. 
The.  words — the  fourth  from  the  cross — were,  like  “Tal- 
itha  cumi,”  and  ^^Abba”  (Mark  v,  41;  xiv,  36),  in  the 
Chaldaic  dialect: 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  207 

Eloi^  Eloiy  lama  sabacthani^  GOD,  MT 

GOD,  WHY  HAST  THOU  FOKSAKEN  MEV^ 

As  already  remarked,  the  last  four  cries  relate  to 
Himself.  They  were  all  uttered  within  a few  moments 
of  each  other,  and  just  before  His  death.  They  divide 
themselves  into  two  pairs,  the  first  of  which  relates  to 
His  distress,  the  last  to  His  triumph.  The  second  one 
of  the  first  pair,  thirst,”  was  the  cry  of  physical,  the 
first  one,  “My  God,  &c.,”  of  spiritual,  distress.  This 
is  a cry  of  appalling  woe.  The  words  express  the  con- 
summation of  calamity.  When  one  is,  or  feels  himself 
to  be,  forsaken  of  God,  what  is  left?  But  they  are  not  the 
cry  of  distraction.  Jesus  had  come  to  this  hour  intelli- 
gently, calmly,  and  with  a full  knowledge  of  all  that  it 
involved. . He  knew  the  motives  and  objects  of  this 
self-sacrifice,  its  agonies,  and  its  resultant  rewards;  to 
Himself,  joy,  and  to  the  race,  blessings  incalculable.  Nor 
was  it  the  cry  of  impatience,  disappointment  or  guilt. 
The  retrospect  brought  no  grief,  the  prospect,  no  gloom. 
His  victory  in  dying  would.  He  knew,  be  followed  by 
His  victory  over  death  and  the  grave.  His  submission 
to  the  will  of  God,  and  His  love  to  man  were  perfect.  And 
the  active  sentiment  of  love,  and  the  spirit  of  genuine  de- 
votion, which  never  wavered,  enabled  Him  to  make  that 
deep,  full  feeling  o±  that  deep,  full  death  a stupendous 
act  of  prayer,  and  an  amazing  tribute  of  praise. 

Was  it,  then,  the  cry  of  actual  desertion?  Surely  not. 
This  would  give  a most  frightful  representation  of  the 
character  of  God,  and  is  at  variance  with  His  own 
words,  which  refer  to  the  whole  period  of  His  sufferings; 


208 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


am  not  alone,  because  the  Father  is  with  Me.”  (John 
xvi,  32;  viii,  29.)  He  ever  did,  He  delighted  to  do, 
those  things  that  pleased  the  Father,  and  with  Him  the 
Father  was  ever  well  pleased.  He,  at  that  very  time, 
was  suffering  in  obedience  to  His  will,  and  it  is  not 
possible  that  He  would  reward  obedience,  such  as  this, 
with  an  experience  such  as  that,  that  He  would  forsake 
One  so  absolutely  perfect  in  sweetest  submission,  and 
in  holiest  trust. 

The  subject  is  confessedly  mysterious.  What  passed 
between  Him  and  the  Father  during  those  three  hours 
was  too  deep  to  sound,  too  awful  to  narrate.  But  there 
must  have  been  a most  awful  pressure  upon  His  heart 
to  have  forced  out  such  a cry — a pressure  immensely 
heavier  than  that  coming  from  the  physical  sufferings 
which  He  endured.  And,  with  a most  reverent  spirit 
we  would  seek,  so  far  as  we  can  find  light  upon  the 
subject  from  the  narratives,  for  the  reason  of  this  cry. 
His  life-sufferings  came  to  Him  partly  as  a Substitute, 
but  mostly  as  the  Servant  of  God.  Standing  among 
men  for  God,  He  suffered  from  them  on  God’s  behalf. 
This  was  also  true  of  the  agonies  and  insults  which  had 
endured  this  day  up  to  this  point.  And  His  loyalty  to 
God  and  truth,  ever  conspicuous,  appeared  during  this 
suffering  in  its  highest  glory.  In  all  this  we  see  the 
highest,  the  ‘‘burnt  offering”  aspect  of  the  atonement. 
Beyond  this  the  mind  cannot  go.  Throughout  life 
Jesus  had  ever  delighted  to  do  God’s  will.  And  on 
the  cross  He,  in  offering  Himself  to  God,  showed  His 
intense  desire  to  carry  out  all  the  Divine  counsels,  and 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


209 


His  unshakable  purpose  to  accomplish  the  Divine  will. 
His  obedience  had  ever,  ascended  as  sweetest  incense.  And 
this  expression  of  His  thoroughly  obedient  and  devoted 
heart  was  the  highest  that  could  be.  On  the  cross  He 
told  out  the  secrets  of  His  love  to  God  in  language 
man  cannot  understand.  And  whether  we  consider 
this  or  any  other  aspect  of  His  death,  never  did  the  Divine 
glories  shine  out  so  brightly  as  in  these  deepest  shades. 
Never  did  His  love  flow  out  so  freely  as  now,  when  the 
hatefulness  of  men  and  devils  tried  to  hinder  it.  Never 
was  the  sweet  odor  of  His  preciousness  so  set  free  as 
now  amid  the  bruising  of  the  vase.  Never  was  He 
more  inexpressibly  dear  to  His  Father  than  now,  when 
in  the  sweetness  of  a perfect  obedience.  He  was  about 
to  drink  the  cup  which  had  been  presented  to  Him  in 
Gethsemane.  And  the  two  ideas  of  accomplishing  the 
will  of  God,  and  suffering  for  the  sins  of  man,  meet  in 
this  act. 

Up  to  this  point  on  the  cross,  as  during  life.  He  had 
endured  the  contradiction  of  sinners  against  Himself. 
Men  and  Satan  had  done  everything  that  diabolical  ma- 
lignity could  suggest.  He  had  been  abused,  accused  of 
having  a devil,  of  being  mad,  and  of  blasphemy.  He  had 
been  maligned,  misunderstood,  followed  by  the  sleuth- 
hounds  of  the  Sanhedrim,  betrayed,  and  outraged  in  all 
the  forms  and  ways  which  we  have  been  studying.  Add 
to  these  the  unutterable  woes  from  Satan’s  onslaught — 
not  yet  ended — on  His  spirit.  And  all  this  came  upon 
Him  because  He  had  stood  forth  as  the  Champion  of 
truth  and  righteousness. 


210  • THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

All  this  is  very  clear.  But  it  does  not  explain  the 
three  hours’  darkness,  nor  that  appalling  cry.  What 
do  we  see?  The  head  that  would  have  graced  the  dia- 
dem of  empire  was  crowned  with  thorns.  The  hands 
that  were  stretched  out  only  in  acts  of  mercy  and  love 
were  pierced  with  nails.  The  living  Temple  of  truth 
and  justice,  the  august  Habitation  of  the  Most  High, 
was  assaulted  with  blows  and  blasphemies  by  an  infu- 
riated mob.  Perfect  innocence  was  sufiering  what  is 
due  only  to  greatest  guilt.  Perfect  obedience  was  re- 
warded with  utmost  ignominy.  Perfect  holiness  was 
invaded  by  the  most  hideous  temptations.  A life 
radiant  with  undimmed  beauty  of  every  kind,  was 
plunged  into  indescribable  darkness.  If  ever  there  was 
a time  when  the  just  God  should  interpose,  it  was  now. 
Especially  so,  since  Jesus  had,  throughout  life,  and  on  the 
cross,  exhibited  a loyalty  and  devotion  to  Him  unheard,  ^ 
undreamt,  of  before.  And  yet  from  Him,  to  whom 
He  had  borne  the  fullest  testimony  that  in  Him  He 
‘^was  well  pleased,”  came  this  cry.  He,  for  the  first  time, 
allows  His  Son  to  be  in  a position  where  it  seemed  to 
Him  that  His  sensible  Presence  was  withdrawn. 

Actually,  it  was  not,  but,  sensibly,  to  Him  it  seemed 
to  be.  And  this  was  a cry  of  amazement  at  such  an 
experience,  while  experiencing  the  full  horror  of  so 
awful  a death.  And  the  only  solution  of  the  pressure 
which  forced  out  the  cry,  consistent  with  the  charac- 
ter of  God,  and  with  the  facts  in  the  case,  is  this,  the 
sufferings  were  substitutionary  in  their  character.  De- 
ny this,  and  where — as  the  remarks  in  the  last  paragraph 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  211 

show — is  the  holiness,  justice,  love  or  Fatherhood  of 
God? 

Jesus  was  now  undergoing  all  that  man  experiences 
in  the  hour  of  death — the  dread,  the  darkness,  the 
agony,  the  crushing  down,  the  going  from  all  the 
bright  and  pleasant  experiences  of  life  into  the  loneli- 
ness and  utter  desolation  of  that  strange  unknown,  called 
death.  And  all  this,  from  the  constitution  of  His  Per- 
son and  from  the  character  of  His  humanity,  was  im^ 
mensely  more  painful  to  Him  than  is  the  experience  of 
dying  to  ordinary  men.  Our  sinful  humanity  can  but 
little  enter  into  the  sensations  of  His  physical  sufter- 
ings,  then  at  their  height,  and  utterly  strange  to  Him — 
the  thirst,  the  pain,  the  consuming  of  the  strength,  the 
drying  up  of  the  sap  of  life.  But  there  was  immensely 
more  than  this.  He  had  now  entered  into  a region  be- 
yond all  that  men  endure,  beyond  all  that  He  had  en- 
dured as  the  Servant  of  God,  and  into  a region  where 
men  and  devils  could  not  go.  The  Court  of  Heaven 
had  descended  to  Calvary.  Divine  justice  was  on  the 
bench.  Divine  holiness  was  burning  with  its  consum- 
ing fires.  To  it  was  He  led  as  ^^the  Lamb  of  God, 
who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world.”  ‘^Upon  Him 
was  the  Lord  laying  the  iniquity  of  us  all.”  ^‘He  who 
knew  no  sin,”  because  fully  identifying  Himself  with 
us,  ^^is  now  being  made  sin  for  us,”  is  now  experiencing 
all  that  must  come  to  Hini  from  the  substitutionary 
position  which  He  occupied,  all  that  was  involved  in, 
‘•Thou  shalt  make  His  soul  an  offering  for  sin.”  In 
the  exceeding  weakness  of  His  flesh,  He  was  struggling 


212 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


with  the  Divine  sovereignty  and  holiness,  and  was,  at 
the  same  time,  experiencing  the  exceeding  horror,  agony 
and  sorrow  of  essential  death — i,  e,^  death  and  sin, 
which,  to  His  consciousness,  were  inseparable — invad- 
ing essential  life.  He  was  drinking  the  cuj)  which  He 
had  accepted  in  Gethsemane.  He  was  feeling  how  sin 
in  all  its  guilt  and  hideousness,  feels  to  all  that  is  noble, 
pure  and  true.  The  consciousness  of  the  God-Man  was 
touching  the  consciousness  of  death,  as  the  punishment 
of  sin.  This  was  in  order  to  its  expiation.  And  that 
that  might  be  complete.  He  must  undergo  all  its  penal 
effects,  must  experience  that  exile  from  the  sensible 
fellowship  with  God,  which  is  spiritual  death.  Its 
darkness  obscured  the  consciousness  of  Sonship,  and 
hid  God  as  Father  from  His  view.  Just  then  He  was 
losing  His  hold  on  life,  and  it  seemed  to  Him  as  if  He 
was  also  losing  His  hold  on  God,  as  Father.  That 
Presence  which  upheld  martyrs  under  the  severest  tor- 
tures, lulled  the  sensations  of  pain  while  flames  con- 
sumed their  bodies,  and  diffused  over  their  souls  the 
serenity  of  holy  joy,  and  which  had  been  to  Him  better 
than  life,  seemed  withdrawn.  He  felt  as  if  separated 
from  that  smile  which  had  been  support,  and  from  that 
love  which  had  been  His  bliss.  This  was  death — and  it 
was  infinitely  awful.  It  gave  Him  the  strange  sensation 
of  loneliness.  He  seemed  to  Himself  a Solitary  in  the 
universe.  He  could  no  longer  keep  still.  Out  of  this 
densest  gloom,  out  of  this  awfullest  solitariness,  came 
from  His  pale,  quivering  lips,  the  tones  of  amazement 
which  are  yet  vibrating  through  the  universe,  ‘^My 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


213 


God,  My  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  Me?”  In  this,  as 
in  His  blood  shedding,  all  that  He  was^  gave  efficacy 
to  all  that  He  suffered  and  did,  when  He,  as  The  Vic- 
tim, expiated  sin,  and  brought  in  an  everlasting  right- 
eousness. “God  ejpoieesen^  made  Him,  who  knew  no 
sin,  to  be  sin  for  us,  that  we  ginoometha^  might  become 
the  righteousness  of  God,  in  Him.”  (2  Cor.  v,  21.) 
And  as  we  meditate  upon  this  abysmal  woe,  we  ex- 
claim, in  the  litany  of  the  Greek  Church,  “By  Thy  un- 
known sufferings,  O Lamb  of  God,  deliver  us.”* 

It  was  also  a cry  of  supremest  faith.  In  the  days  of 
His  vigor  He  had  gone  forth,  with  the  approbation  of 
His  Father,  to  woo  and  win  a bride.  He  had  found, 
not  a smile,  but  a frown;  not  love,  but  hate;  not  a 
heart  and  hand,  but  a crown  of  thorns  and  a cross. 
Around  Him  now  is  a black  sea  of  guilt,  whose  billows 
dash  furiously  upon  Him.  He  is  cast  out  from  earth. 
He  is  not  yet  received  up  into  heaven.  He  is  experi- 
encing the  whole  aggressive  force  of  the  kingdom  of 
darkness.  He  is  passing  through  death  under  the 
judgment  of  God.  He  sees  the  kingdom  of  death,  and 
all  its  horrors.  He  is  assaulted  by  infernal  tempta- 
tions: “Where  is  now  your  God?”  Never  had  His  con- 
fidence in  God  been  so  tried.  In  the  garden  the  con- 

[*Dr.  Schaff  very  finely  expresses  the  true  conception  of  this 
sufioring : “It  was  a divine  human  experience  of  sin  and  death  in 
their  inner  connection  and  universal  significance  for  the  race,  hy 
One  who  was  perfectly  holy,  a mysterious  and  indescribable  an- 
guish of  the  body  and  the  soul,  in  immediate  prospect  of,  and  in 
actual  contact  with,  death,  as  the  wages  of  sin,  and  the  culmina- 
tion of  all  misery  of  man,  of  which  Jesus  was  free,  but  which  He 
voluntarily  assumed  from  infinite  love  in  behalf  of  the  race.” 


214 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


scioiisness  of  Sonship  had  been  undisturbed.  But 
here  it  was  lost  for  a moment.  Here  He  was  tempted 
to’  the  uttermost  bounds  of  faith,  as  there  He  had  been 
tempted  to  the  uttermost  bounds  of  obedience.  The  life  of 
God  is  obscured  in  His  soul.  He  cannot  say,  ‘‘Father.’’ 
But  His  faith  in  Him  as  His  God  is  unshaken.  His 
spirit  rises  above  the  clouds,  and  reposes  serenely  on 
Him  as  His  God,  and  His  obedience  to  His  will  is  as  per- 
fect as  when,  in  the  Garden,  He  said,  “Thy  will  be  done.” 
God  seems  to  have  forsaken  Him,  but  He  did  not  for- 
sake God.  And  thus  did  He  restore,  for  man,  the  bond 
of  union  with  God,  which  man  had  broken.  And  the 
fact  that,  in  wrestling  with.  He  triumphed  over,  death, 
and,  in  completing  the  atonement,  took  away  its  stingy 
shows  that  the  “why”  of  the  cry  was  but  the  question 
of  faith  seeking  an  answer  v^here  only  it  could  be  found. 

Had  Jesus’  sufferings  involved  His  loss,  salvation 
could  not,  at  such  a cost,  be  a satisfaction  to  us.  But 
His  sorrows  had  no  such  a gloomy  shade.  Having  ob- 
tained salvation.  He,  by  the  energy  of  His  own  holi 
ness,  worked  His  way  out  of  this  darkness  into  a posi- 
tion of  immeasurable  grace.  The  cry  of  anguish  of  this 
tempted,  tortured,  sin-burdened  and  sin-expiating  Man, 
ended  the  anguish.  The  suddenly  illumined  heavens 
was  a sign  of  light  within,  and  the  victory  of  life  over 
death.  The  physical  death  will  be  an  easy  thing.  For 
He  had  found  His  Father  again. 

With  the  returning  light  the  mockery  was  renewed. 
The  Jews  knew  well  the  meaning  of  “Eloi,”  but — as  the 
outos^  this  clearly  shows — they  made  a Satanic  play  on 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


215 


the  word:  ^‘This  Man  calleth  for  Elias.”  While  they 
were  saying  this,  Jesus,  knowing  that  all  things  lieedee 
tetelestai^  were  now  finished,  was  surveying  the  whole 
field  of  Scripture  to  see  whether  anything  remained 
to  be,  not,  pleerothei,  fulfilled,  but  teleioothei^  finished 
in  its  accomplishment,  up  to  that  time.  One  little 
word  of  prophecy,  ‘^they  gave  Me  vinegar  to  drink,” 
(Ps.  Ixix,  21),  was  found.  He  had  thirsted  for  hours, 
but  had  asked  no  drink.  He  could  silently  have  thirst- 
ed on  the  few  remaining  moments  of  life.  But  all 
Scripture  must  be  accomplished.  And  to  open  the  way 
for  accomplishment  of  this  one.  He  uttered  His  fifth 
word — His  first  of  physical  distress — “I  thirst.” 

This  immediately  succeeded  the  fourth  word.  The 
excitement  caused  by  it  was  still  great.  One  or  more, 
(^^they,”  John)— ^.,  of  the  soldiers,  for  no  one  else 
was  allowed  to  approach  the  cross — with  a feeling  of 
genuine  compassion,  ran  to  a canteen  near  by,  which 
was  filled  with  oxos^  unintoxicating  sour  posca^  the 
common  drink  of  the  soldiers.  He  took  a sponge,  tied  it 
to  a hyssop  rod  about  18  inches  long,  saturated  it  with 
the  wine,  and  put  it  to  Jesus’  mouth,  that  He  might 
drink  the  wine.  As  he  did  this  he  said,  in  the  kind- 
liest tones,  ‘‘aphes  idoonen^  come,  wait,  let  us  see 
whether  Elias  will  come  to  Him.”  These  words  show  the 
character  of  this  soldier’s  act.  It  was  a kindness,  intend- 
ed to  refresh  Jesus  until  the  expectation  was  fulfilled. 
The  other  soldiers,  however,  regarding  this  act  as  a dis- 
turbance of  that  expectation — so  it  would  seem — re- 
peated the  same  words,  but  seemingly  as  a check. 


216 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


JesHS  had  refused  the  intoxicating,  but  He  now  receiv- 
ed the  unintoxicating,  drink.  All  was  now  ended  save 
the  completion  of  His  work,  in  dying,  and  to  that  He 
at  once  addressed  Himself.  The  last  four  words  were 
spoken  in  close  connection  with  each  other.  It  seems 
to  me,  in  the  light  of  these  narratives,  and  in  the  light 
of  the  Mosaic  types,  that  Jesus  died  at  3 P.  M.,  the 
time  of  the  evening  sacrifice,  and  the  hour  of  prayer. 
The  cry  of  desertion  was  uttered  peri,  about  (Matt.vs.46.) 
i.  e,,  just  as  the  ninth  hour  was  beginning.  Luke’s  eoos, 
until  (v.  44),  and  Mark’s  tee  kora  ennatee,  at  the  ninth 
hour,  suggest  the  same  thing.  This  cry  was  immedi- 
ately succeeded  by  the  last  three  cries.  The  order  of 
events  is  (a)  Jesus  aneboesen  (Matt.)  eboeesen  (Mark) 
cried  with  a loud  voice,^^A'Z(9^',”  &c.  (Matt.Mark);  (b)  Je- 
sus legei,  saith,  ‘‘I  thirst,”  (John).  Both  cries  are 
necessary  to  account  for  the  immediately  following 
action  of  the  soldiers,  (c)  Jesus  palin  hrazas,  again 
crying,  with  a loud  voice,  (Matt.,  Mark,  Luke),  said,  ‘^It 
is  finished:”  (John.)  Then,  (d)  eipe,  He  said,  “Father, 
into  Thy  hand,  &c.”  Then  (e)  Minas,  having  bowed 
His  head  (John),  He  (f)  dismissed  His  spirit.  (All.) 
There  was  a brief  interval  between  the  words,  “I 
thirst,”  and  the  words,  “It  is  finished,”  filled  up  by  the 
soldier’s  act  of  giving,  and  Jesus’  act  of  receiving,  the 
drink.  But  there  was  no  interval  between  the  second 
loud  voice,  and  its  “It  is  finished,”  and  the  gentle 
voice,  and  its  “Father,  &c.”  All  the  last  words  were 
spoken  in  distinct  tones.  It  seems  certain,  from  the 
comparison  of  the  four  accounts,  that  the  “It  is  fin- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


217 


islied”  preceded  the  ^‘Father,  &C.,”  and  that  the  latter 
was  spoken  in  His  ordinary,  the  former  in  a loud  tone 
of,  voice.  Matthew’s  jpalin^  again,  cried,  indicates 
that  this  voice  was  as  loud,  strong  and  distinct  (Matt. 
Mark,  Luke,  all  use  megalen^  as  was  that  in 

which  He  cried,  ‘‘Eloi,  &c.”  This  was  immediately 
preceding  His  dying.  Matthew  uses  the  aorist  par- 
ticiple, TcrazaSy  crying  out.  Mark  uses  the  aorist  par- 
ticiple, ajpheis^  having  sent  out — the  same  verb  that 
Matthew  uses  to  describe  Jesus’  dismissal  of  His  spirit 
— a loud  voice.  Liike  uses  the  aorist  participle, 
phoneesas — a word  that  indicates  that  it  was  in  the 
usual  tones  of  His  voice — voicing  out  a loud  voice. 
Matthew’s  Tcraz.  indicates  the  strength,  Luke’s  phon, 
the  naturalness  of  His  voice.  Mark’s  apheis  expresses 
His  own  active  agency  in  the  cry.  The  verb  is  com- 
pounded of  apo^  from,  and  ieemi^  to  go.  It  m,ay  sig- 
nify to  permit  to  go,  or  to  send,  away.  The  construc- 
tion of  the  phrase  shows  that  it  has  here  the  second 
meaning.  Jesus  intelligently  and  deliberately  sent  out  a 
loud  voice.  And  there  is  nothing  at  all  in  the  verses  to 
intimate  that  it  was  a cry  of  distress,  but  everything  to 
show  that  His  physical  strength  had  not  been  exhausted 
by  His  sufferings.  It  was  the  shout  of  triumph.  It 
w^as  a proclamation  sent  out  to  the  remotest  bounds  of 
the  universe: 

TETELEITAI,  IT  IS  FINISHED. 

The  cross  had  been  set  up  epi  sunteleia  toon  aioon- 
ioon^  upon  the  edge  of  the  ages  (Heb.  ix,  26),  and  on 
it  Jesus  had  done  His  work,  and  had  won  His  victory. 


218 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


And  He  now,  with  this  loud  voice,  announced  this  victorj 
in  the  closing,  as  He  had  poured  out  His  distress  in  the 
first,  words  of  the  xxii  Psalm.  ^ All  was  done.  All 
prophecy  relating  to  His  first  coming  was  fulfilled,  and 
an  infallible  assurance  was  given  that  His  resurrection, 
and  all  relating  to  His  second  coming  would  be,  as  well, 
and  all  between.  All  Levitical  types  had  found  their 
Anti-type,  and  were  done  away.  The  true  Sacrifice  hav- 
ing been  offered,  and  sin  put  away,  the  old  covenant 
was  at  an  end,  and  the  new  covenant  was  established, 
and  sealed.  All  things  in  heaven  and  earth  were 
reconciled.  The  sting  of  death  had  been  extracted. 
Satan  and  his  host  were  vanquished  foes.  Salvation 
for  man  had  been  infallibly  secured,  the  foundations  of 
the  Kingdom  had  been  laid,  and  the  new  creation 
had  begun.  His  humiliation  and  suffering  was  ended. 
His  obedience  and  victory  were  complete.  He  had 
proved  Himself  worthy  to  be  the  Saviour  of  the  w^orld, 
worthy  to  be  exalted  by  the  God  whom  He  obeyed,  and  to 
be  trusted,  loved,  and  adored  by  the  race,  which  He  died 
to  redeem.  He  had,  in  honorable  conflict,  conquered 
Satan,  and  had  wrested  from  him  the  sovereignity  of 
the  earth.  Henceforth,  His  cross  is  the  center  around 
which  all  things  revolve,  and  from  which  all  blessings 
flow,  the  light  in  which  all  things  are  seen,  and  the 
standard  by  which  all  things  are  measured.  Hence- 
forth, nothing  remained  for  Him  but  joy.  Henceforth, 
He  shall  see  the  rich  fruitage  of  His  sufferings,  and  be 


[*Read  the  last  verses  of  that  Psalm,  and  note  how,  daily  and 
multipliedly,  they  are  being  fulfilled  before  your  eyes.] 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


219 


satisfied.  The  eternal  Spirit,  who  had  been  His  con- 
stant Support  and  infallible  Guide,  and  through  whom 
He  had  offered  Himself,  without  spot,  to  God,  gave 
Him  assurance  of  the  acceptance  of  His  finished  work. 
And,  not  in  noisy  exultation,  but  in  deepest  and  sweet- 
est composure  of  spirit.  He,  in,  in  the  word, 

CONSUMMATIJM  EST, 
announced  the  fact  to  the  universe. 

After  He  had  thus  cried  out,  He  said,  in  tones  loud 
enough  for  all  to  hear,  ‘^Father,  into  Thy  hands  para- 
tithemai  (the  preferable  reading,  Tischendorf,  Alford, 
Lange),  I place  mou  pneuma^  My  spirit.”  His  soul 
psuchee^  went  to  Hades.  (Acts  ii,  27.)  His  spirit  He 
committed  into  His  Father’s  hands.  This  word  of 
calmness,  faith,  entire  and  serenest  resignation,  shows 
that  the  consciousness  of  the  Presence  of  God  as  Father 
had  returned  to  Him  again.  The  sense  of  desertion 
had  been  exchanged  for  the  sense  of  peace.  In  the 
words  of  highest  triumph,  ^‘It  is  finished,”  He  had  just 
declared  that  God  had  not  forsaken  Him,  that  He,  not 
Satan,  was  victorious.  In  the  ^^Father,  &c.,”  He,  in 
the  joyful  assurance  that  He  would  receive  His  spirit 
back  again,  announced  the  end. 

This  was  His  last  word.  Tauta  eipoon^  having  said 
these  things.  He  bowed  His  head.  This  is  the  first 
mention  of  such  an  act.  It  indicates  that  up  to  this 
moment  His  head  had  been  erect.  It  did  not  droop 
from  exhaustion,  but  by  an  act  of  His  own  will.  Kli- 
nas^  is  nom.  sing.  mas.  active  part.,  aorist,  and  expresses 


220  THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

His  own  active  agency.  Having  bowed  His  head,  He 
GATE  UP  HIS  SPIRIT. 

This  fact  is  expressed  by  Matthew,  thus:  apheeke 
to  jpneuma^  He  sent  out,  or  away,  the  spirit.  The 
verb  which  is  the  one  used  by  Mark  to  express 
Jesus’  act  of  sending  out  His  voice,  may  signify,  as  we 
have  already  remarked,  either  to  send,  or  to  suffer  to 
go,  away.  John  says,  paredooke  to  pneumae^  He  deliv- 
ered the  spirit.  This  verb  is  used  to  express  the  dying 
of  men,  but  never  so  in  the  active  voice.  (Matt,  x,  21,  &c.) 
The  verb  used  in  the  Septuagint  to  express  the  death 
of  the  patriarchs  and  others,  signifies  ceased^  come  to 
an  end,  without  defining  the  agency  whereby  it  was 
done.  And  the  verb,  ekpsuchoo^  used  in  connection 
with  the  death  of  Anannias,  Saphira,  Herod  and  others 
(Aots  V,  5,  10;  xii,  23,  &c.),  means  to  breathe  out,  invol- 
untarily, the  principle  of  animal  life.  Of  no  one,  but 
of  Jesus,  is  it  said,  ‘‘He  dismissed  His  spirit.”  And  the 
writers  express  this  act  of  His  by  words  which  they 
never  use  in  connection  with  the  death  of  any  others. 
Nor  do  any  of  the  evangelists  say,  of  Jesus,  that  He 
died. 

Having  dismissed  His  spirit,  exepneuee^  He  breathed 
out — .In  Mark  and  Luke,  where  only  this  verb  is 
found,  the  noun,  pneuna^  is  wanting.  He  sent.  He 
dismissed.  His  spirit.  (Matt.,  John.)  In  connection 
with  this  He  breathed  out,  what?  H.'is  last  breath. 

These  verbs  are  used,  in  the  classical  Greek,  to  ex- 
press the  dying  of  men,  and  even  of  animals.  But  are 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


221 


never  so  used  in  the  Septuagint,  nor  in  the  New 
Testament.  In  these  places  they  are  in  the  active 
voice.  They  express  Jesus  acting,  not  His  being  acted 
upon.  They  tell  us  of  His  own  T oluntary  and  deter- 
mined acts,  in  (a)  His  committing  His  spirit  into  His 
Father’s  hands;  in  (b)  dismissing  and  delivering  it  up 
to  Him;  and  in  (c)  His  ceasing  to  breathe,  expressed 
by  exepneusen^  He  breathed  out. 

The  breathing  into  his  nostrils  the  breath,  of  life, 
gave  man  his  first  inspiration,  the  beginning  of  physical 
life,  and  also  of  expiration.  These  two  give  respiration, 
without  which  physical  life  ceases.  And  the  words 
used  by  the  writers  show  that  Jesus,  by  His  own  voli- 
tion, stopped  His  respiration,  breathed  out,  as  He  dis- 
missed His  spirit.  His  physical  life,  and  so  died.  And 
this  stopped  respiration  was  also  a subject  of  prophecy: 
^‘He  poured  out” — the  active  voice — ^^His  soul  unto 
death.”  (Is.  liii,  12.) 

This  exegesis  establishes  certain  facts:  (a)  Jesus  died 
on  the  cross,  but  crucifixion  was  not  the  physical  cause 
of  His  death.  He  died  on,  but  not  by,  the  cross.  Or- 
dinarily, the  crucified  lived  ten  or  twelve  hours,  often 
three  or  four  days.  The  death  of  the  two  thieves  was 
hastened  by  the  cTucifragium,  But  Jesus  was  dead 
within  six  hours  from  the  time  when  He  was  crucified 
— an  extraordinary  fact,  and  one  that  greatly  astonished 
Pilate;  (b)  susceptibility  to  suffering  and  death  was 
the  conditional  element  that  made  crucifixion  possible, 
(2  Cor.  xii,  4) ; but  neither  this,  nor  weakness,  caused 
His  death.  No  mere  man  could  undergo  all  that  He 


22 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


endured  in  tlie  Garden,  during  the  trials,  and  on  the  cross, 
and  live.  But  pathological  principles  cannot  apply,  in 
all  respects,  to  Him.  There  was,  in  the  constitution  of 
His  Person,  a humanity  without  sin,  so  without  disease, 
and  though  susceptible  ol  dying,  without  liability  to 
death.  His  health  was  supremely  perfect.  His  physi- 
cal strength  was  so  little  impaired  by  all  that  He  had 
undergone,  that  He,  just  before  dying,  twice  cried  out 
with  a loud  voice. 

(c)  Nor  was  His  death  caused  by  a rupture  of  the  heart, 
caused  by  either  mental  or  physical  agony.  This  theory 
is  inconsistent  with  the  loud  cry.  In  not  one  place  in 
the  N.  T.  does  Matthew’s  hrazo  mean  shriek,  as  a cry 
of  agony,  unless  in  Mark  v,  5,  where  it  describes  the 
cry  of  the  maniac.  But  Jesus  was  no  maniac.  The 
same  is  true  of  Luke’s  verb,  phoneoo^  except  that  in  no 
case  has  it  even  the  semblance  of  a shriek.  Mark’s 
phrase,  apeis  phoneen^  expresses  the  fact  without  defin- 
ing the  character  of  the  sound,  except  that  it  was  great. 
This  theory  could  be  established  only  by  a post  mor- 
tem examination.  And  it  is  inconsistent  with  the  fact 
that  after  the  cry,  which,  it  says,  shows  that  this  heart 
was  breaking.  He  uttered  His  last  word — a thing  ut- 
terly impossible  after  the  heart  had  been  broken.  Heart- 
rupture  cannot  occur,  except  in  those  whose  heart- walls 
are  congenitally  thin,  or  have  undergone  a change  in 
texture  or  thickness.  Where  either  of  these  predispos- 
ing causes  exist,  anything,  either  physical  or  mental, 
which  would  throw  on  to  the  heart  the  necessity  for 
unusual  exertion,  miglit  be  a proximate  cause.  But  where 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


223 


the  heart  itself  is  in  a normally  sound  condition,  rap- 
ture cannot  occur.  And  Jesus,  as  priest  and  victim, 
must  be  without  any  physical  blemish.  His  miracu- 
lous conception  assures  us  that  every  organ  was  abso- 
lutely perfect,  (d)  Nor  does  the  flowing  of  blood  from 
His  side  show  heart-rupture.  If  His  death  resulted 
from  expiration,  and  respiration  ceased  before  the  heart 
ceased  acting,  there  would  be  an  engorgement  of  the 
lungs,  and  of  the  nervous  system,  by  the  flowing  of  the 
blood  into  them  out  of  the  heart.  And  from  these,  if  they 
were  pierced,  the  blood  would  flow  out  through  the 
wound.  To  me  the  objections  to  the  theory  of  the  rupture 
of  the  heart  are  insuperable.  It  is  forbidden  by  the  con- 
stitution of  His  humanity,  by  the  purpose  and  object  of 
His  death,  and  by  the  exegesis  of  the  passages.  The  facts 
make  upon  my  mind  the  impression  they  made  upon 
the  centurion:  ^^When  he  saw  that  Jesus,  outoo  hrozas^ 
thus,  i.  ^.,  this  manner,  cried  out,  and  exepneusen^ 
breathed  out,^’  he  said,  “Truly  this  Man  was  the  Son  of 
God.”  He  was  that,  or  He  was  a suicide. 

A discussion  of  the  doctrinal  and  practical  questions 
arising  out  of  the  death  of  Jesus,  is  foreign  to  the  scope 
and  aim  of  this  work.  We  do  not  seek  either  to  support 
or  to  overthrow  any  man’s  theory.  Our  one  wish  is  to 
let  the  facts  speak  for  themselves.  But  in  the  investi- 
gation, some  conclusions  have  so  forced  themselves 
upon  my  mind  that  I cannot  conceal  them  from  the 
reader. 

In  a certain  sense,  Jesus  was  the  Yictim  of  the  cir- 
cumstances by  which  He  was  surrounded,  and  of  the 


224 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


deadly  hostility  by  which  He  was  pursued.  But  He 
was  not  a helpless  Yictim,  torn  to  pieces  by  the  wheel 
of  these  circumstances.  His  death  was  the  result  of 
these  forces  at  work,  and  of  an  inevitable  moral  neces- 
sity. So  He  declared  during  life,  ‘•^The  Son  of  Man 
ede%  must,  be  lifted  up;”  and  after  His  resurrection, 
^^edei^  ought  not,  the  Christ  to  have  suffered  these 
things.”  This  necessity  had  its  roots  throughout  the 
Old  Testament  prophecy:  ‘‘The  Son  of  Man  goeth,  as 
it  is  written  of  Him.”  And  Paul  told  the  Jews  that 
their  rulers,  in  condemning  Jesus,  had  but  fulfilled  the 
prophecies.  Farther  back  yet  they  extend,  even  to  the 
eternal  counsel  of  God:  “Him  being  delivered  by  the 
determinate  counsel  of  God.”  Jesus,  Himself,  sought 
to  be  relieved  of  this  necessity  provided  it  could  be 
done,  by  pleading  the  possibility  of  God.  But  it  was 
as  inevitable  in  the  sequences  of  the  Divine  order  as  is 
the  rising  of  the  sun.  In  order  to  the  vindication  of  the 
Divine  law  and  government,  and  to  atonement,  recon- 
ciliation, and  the  gathering  of  the  scattered  into  one,  it 
must  be.  (2  Cor.  v;  John  xi,  61;  Eph.  i,  10.)  He 
was,  because  He  must  be,  the  Grape  trodden  under  the 
wine-press  of  the  justice  of  God,  the  Wheat  bruised 
between  the  upper  and  lower  millstone  of  truth  and 
righteousness,  the  Olive  from  which  the  oil  was  beaten 
under  the  heavy  pressure  of  the  Divine  hand.  Obedi- 
ence to  the  will  of  God  for  the  noblest  ends,  was  the 
moral  cause  of  His  death. 

The  physical  cause  of  it  was  aphnoea,  a cessation 
of  breathing,  and  the  consequent  pouring  out  of  the 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


225 


blood  from  His  heart.  This  was,  as  was  all  preceding, 
by  the  permission  and  act  of  His  own  will.  In  response 
fo  the  word:  ^‘Awake,  O sword,  against  My  Shepherd, 
and  against  the  Man,  My  Fellow,  smite  the  Shepherd,’’ 
He  gave  Himself  up  into  His  Father’s  hand,  and  so 
into  the  power  of  His  foes.  ^^He  gave  Himself  for  us,” 
and,  in  this  aspect,  His  death  was  passive.  But,  in 
order  to  accomplish  the  exode,  concerning  which  Moses 
and  Elias  had  talked  with  Him  on  the  Mount,  He 
steadfastly  set  His  face  to  go  to  Jerusalem.  in 

order  that  I may  take  it  again,  I lay  down  My  life,”  He 
said.  Pie  did  this  on  the  cross.  And  in  this  aspect  He 
w is  active  in  His  dying.  And  unless  He  was  what  the 
centurion,  watching  His  death,  declared  Him  to  be,  the 
Son  of  God,  He  was — as  already  remarked — a suicide. 

But  this  is  not  all.  He  died,  as  a martyr,  for  the 
truth  which  He  had  proclaimed,  and  for  the  cause 
which  He  had  espoused.  The  facts  demand,  but  are 
not  satisfied  with,  this  explanation.  “The  Son  of  Man 
came,”  He  declared,  “to  give  His  life  a ransom  fop 
many.”  How?  By  “giving  His  life  for  the  sheep.” 
More  than  passive  sufiering  and  death  was  required  to 
fulfill  this  word.  In  the  Garden  He  had  prayed  that 
He  might  die,  not  the  overborne  victim  of  death,  but 
actively,  that  is,  as  a Priest.  And  this  prayer  had  been 
heard.  (See  my  “Holy  Sorrow.”)  Recall  all  the  oppo- 
sitions to  Him.  Earth  and  hell  had  combined  to  bear 
Him  down.  He  was  forsaken  of,  but  did  not  forsake, 
God.  He  suffers  all,  but  does  not  succumb;  agonizes, 
but  does  not  faint;  patiently  endures,  but  is  not  over- 


226 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


come,  either  morally  or  physically.  All  were  enough 
to  crush  Him,  could  He  have  been  crushed.  But  He 
outlived,  and  outlasted  them  all.  The  unequalled,  un- 
conquered, all-conquering  Agent,  He  dismissed  His 
Spirit.  In  dying  actively,  as  a Priest,  He  made  an 
atonement  for  all.  And  by  His  strength  actively  to 
die.  He  overcame  death  for  all  believers. 

‘^He  was  crucified  in  weakness,”  but  died  not  from 
weakness.  He  was  ^‘the  Victim  for  sin,  but  not  the 
Victim  of  death.”  In  the  clear  and  calm  intelligence  of 
a Manhood,  supremely  self-possessed,  and  strong  to  do 
and  to  suffer,  ^‘He  offered  Himself,  His  whole  Self, 
spirit,  soul  and  body.”  He  offered  His  spirit,  and 
committed  it  to  His  Father;  His  soul,  and  it  went  to 
Hades — but  because  atonement  was  accomplished,  it 
could  not  be  left  there;  His  body,  and  its  life  was  given 
up  in,  and  by,  the  shedding  of  His  life-blood.  (Heb.  x, 
4-14.)  ‘‘The  life  of  the  fiesh  is  in  the  blood;  it  is  for 
the  life  thereof:  and  I have  given  it  to  you  upon  the 
altar  to  make  an  atonement  for  the  soul.”  (Lev.  xvii, 
11,  14.)  The  extinction  of  life,  through  the  actual 
pouring  out  of  the  life-blood  from  the  heart,  was  neces. 
sary  to  the  typical  sacrifice.  Without  the  shed- 
din<r  of  the  life-blood,  there  could  be  no  remission  of 
sins.  The  same  facts  must  appear  in  the  Antitype. 
Hence  the  blood  exuded  from  His  sacred  Person  in  the 
Garden,  could  not  be  the  atoning  blood,  for  life  was  not 
then  given  up.  Nor  could  the  blood  which  fiow’^ed 
either  from  the  nail-wounds,  or  from  His  side,  be  it. 
For  the  acts,  which  caused  those  drops  of  blood  to  flow, 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


227 


were  done  by  those  not  priests,  and  neither  flowing  was 
connected  with  the  extinction  of  life.  The  former  was 
flowing  some  hours  before,  the  latter — God’s  evidence 
to  man  that  the  atoning  blood  had  been  shed  already — 
some  thirty  minutes  or'  more,  perhaps,  after  death. 
And  John,  always  careful  in  his  use  of  words,  describes 
the  latter  fact  by  the  verb,  exelthon^  came  out  (xix,  34), 
— a word  which  expresses  the  moving  of  the  blood  and 
water,  but  by  no  action  of  Jesus’  will  therein — and  not  by 
the  verb,  ekchuno^  poured  out,  which  Jesus  used  to  ex- 
press that  flowing  forth  of  the  blood  from  the  heart,  by 
which  life  becomes  extinct.  (Matt,  xxiii,  35;  Luke  xi? 
50,  of  others;  and  Matt,  xxvi,  28;  Mark  xiv,  24;  Luke 
xxii,  20,  of  Himself.) 

Jesus,  as  already  remarked,  was  both  Priest  and 
Yictirn.  ‘^He,  Himself,”  i.  ^.,  by  His  own  action,  ‘‘re- 
deemed us  to  God,”  “He,  by  Himself,  purged  our  sins,  by 
His  own  blood.”  He  could  do  this  only  by  His  own  act, 
by  His  so  pouring  out  His  own  blood  from  His  heart,  that 
His  physical  life  would  go  out  with  the  act.  This  He 
did.  “He  suffered  for  us,”  “He  offered  Himself  for 
us.”  The  writer  to  the  Hebrews  combines  both  aspects 
of  the  truth,  viz:  the  offering  in  suffering  and  the 
suffering  in  offering:  “If  He  offer  often.  He  must  often 
have  suffered^  &c.”  (ix,  25,  26.)  And  the  words  which 
this  writer  invariably  uses  to  define  Jesus  action  in 
His  own  death,  are  anapheroo  and  jprospheroo^  two 
verbs  which  were  used  in  classic  Greek  to  express  the 
action  of  the  priest  in  the  sacriflce.  And  whether  we 
study  the  types,  or  the  history,  or  the  commeuts  of  the 


228 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


New  Testament  writers  upon  the  fact,  we  can  reach  no 
other  conclusion  than  this:  that  Jesus  actually  poured 
out  His  own  blood  from  His  heart,  and  that  He  so  did 
this,  that  the  pouring  out  of  the  blood  was  the  giving 
up  of  His  life. 

The  fact  is  emphasized  over  and  over  again,  that  Je- 
sus intended,  in  dying,  to  pour  out  His  own  blood  as 
atonement.  ‘‘He  hath  poured  out  His  soul  unto 
death.’’  In  the  moment  of  our  death  the  whole  vol- 
ume of  blood  in  the  heart  is  poured  out  into  the  veinous 
system.  This  movement  is  one  over  which  the  dying 
have  no  control,  and  which  has  no  significancy.  But  in 
Jesus  this  movement  was  intentional  and  significant. 
He  intentionally  and  suddenly  ceased  breathing.  Through 
and  by  this  sudden  stopping  of  respiration,  He  poured 
out  the  blood  from  the  heart  into  some  internal  cavity, 
from  which  it  came  out  through  His  pierced  side.  And 
this  was  the  pouring  out  of  His  blood.  He  did  this 
with  the  intention  that  in  the  pouring  out  of  His  blood 
physical  life  would  become  extinct.  And  His  purpose 
therein  was  to  make  an  atonement.  Thus  all  the  scrip- 
tural conditions  are  met.  And  here  is  that  blood-shed- 
ding^which  is  for  the  remission  of  sins.  No  wonder  the 
saved  call  it  “precious  blood.”  No  wonder  they  are 
enraptured  with  Him  who  shed  it.  To  them  Paul’s 
words  are  not  rhapsody,  but  reality,  deep-toned,  sub- 
duing, penetrating,  purifying;  “but  God  forbid  that 
1 should  fflory,  save  in  the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.” 

Untold  millions  have,  in  their  measure,  been  stirred 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


229 


by  that  profound  emotion.  The  saved  have  sought  the 
most  fitting  terms  in  which  to  sound  out  His  praises, 
who  died  on  that  cross  for  man.  It  has  been  their  glory, 
strength  and  consolation.  It  has  inspired  the  pencil 
of  painters  and  the  pen  of  poets.  Its  sorrows,  suffer- 
ings and  salvation  have  been  sounded  and  sung  in  ser- 
mon and  song.  And  such  is  the  power  of  its  life  that 
its  freshness  becomes  theirs.  The  verses  written  by 
Fortunatus  more  than  1300  years  ago,  and  given  below,* 
well  illustrates  this  fact. 


PHEHOMEHA  AHD  IHCIDEHTS 


A death  so  mysterious  and  awful,  yet  mighty  and 
majestic,  so  ignominous,  yet  so  grand  and  so  far-reach- 
ing and  powerful  in  its  effects,  must  be  attended  with 
phenomena  both  startling  and  significant. 


Section  XII. 


Connected  with  the  Death  of  Jesus, 


Vexilla  Regis. 


The  Vexilla  Regis. 


FORTUNATUS. 


DR.  NEALE. 


The  Koyal  Banners  forward  go ; 


Vexilla  regis  prodeunt, 
Fulget  crucis  mysterium, 
Quo  came  carnis  conditor 
Suspensus  est  patibulo. 


The  Cross  shines  forth  in  mys 
tic  glow ; 


Where  He  in  flesh,  our  flesh 
who  made, 


Our  sentence  bore,  our  ransom 
paid. 


Quo  vulneratus  insuper 
Mucrone  diro  lanceae, 
Ut  nos  lavaret  crimine 
Manavit  unda  sanguine. 


Where  deep  for  us  the  spear 
was  dy’d, 


Life’s  current  rushing  from  His 
side, 


To  wash  us  in  that  precious 
flood 


Where  mingled  water  flow’d, 
and  blood. 


230 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


One  was  the  EENDING  OF  THE  VEIL  in  the 
Temple,  into  two  parts  (Mark),  in  the  middle  (Luke), 
from  the  top  to  the  bottom.  (Matt.) 

A fact  could  be  the  only  possible  foundation  for  the 
statement:  ‘^the  veil  of  the  Temple  was  rent  in  twain 
from  the  top  to  the  bottom.”  The  idea  was  foreign  to 
human  thinking.  There  was  nothing  in  prophecy  or  in 
Jewish  belief  to  suggest  it.  None  but  priests  had  ac- 
cess to  the  place  where  the  veil  was  hung.  None  but 
the  priest  officiating  at  the  time  could  have  witnessed 
the  occurrence,  whose  significance  he  could  not  un- 
derstand, and  which  must  have  appalled  him,  perhaps 
driven  him  from  the  Temple  in  terror.  He,  or  other 
priests,  alone,  could  have  reported  it.  And  this,  un- 
friendly as  they  were  to  Jesus,  they  would  not  have 
done  unless  the  rending  had  actually  occurred.  The 
fact,  undoubtedly,  gave  rise  to  the  report. 

It  was  the  katajpetasma^  the  inner  veil,  that  was  rent. 
This  veil  separated  the  Holy  from  the  Most  Holy  Place. 
(Com.  Ex.  xxvi,61;  xxvii,  20;  xl,  3,  in  the  Sept.with  Heb. 
vi,  19  ; ix,  8;  x,  19,  20.)  It  was  a Babylonian  tapes- 


Impleta  sunt  qusB  concinit 
David  fideli  carmine 
Dicens ; In  nationibus 
Kegnavit  a ligno  Deus. 

Arbor  decora  et  fulgida, 
Ornata  regis  purpura, 

Electa  digno  stipite 

Tam  sancta  membra  tangere. 


Fulfill’d  is  all  that  David  told 

In  true  prophetic  song  of  old ; 

Amidst  the  nation’s  God,  sj^iih 
he, 

Hath  reign’d  and  triumph’d 
from  the  Tree. 

O Tree  of  Beauty!  Tree  of 
Light! 

O Tree  with  royal  purple  dight! 

Elect  on  whose  triumphal  breast 

Those  holy  limbs  should  find 
their  rest ' 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


231 


try,  of  fine  fiax,  and  gorgeous  in  its  colors  of  pni’ple, 
scarlet  and  hyacinth.  It  was  a massive  clotti,  two 
inches  thick,  forty  feet  long  and  wide,  and  kept  firm 
and  strong  by  being  annually  renewed.  The  rending 
occurred  immediately  after  the  cry,  ‘Tt  is  finished.’^ 
Though  simultaneous  with,  it  preceded,  the  earthquake 
in  order  of  events,  and  could  have  been  caused  by  it 
only  by  its  rending  the  Temple.  It  occurred  at  3 P.  M., 
the  time  of  the  beginning  of  the  evening  sacrifice. 
The  Temple  courts  were  crowded  with  worshippers. 
The  priest  was  busy  with  his  duties  in  the  Holy  Place. 
The  fright  caused  by  the  earthquake  would  at  once  be 
displaced  by  the  amazement,  awe  and  horror  caused  by  the 
sudden  crackling  sound,  and  by  the  appalling  sight  ot  the 
rending  of  the  veil,  and  done,too,  by  no  visible  hand,from 
the  top  to  the  bottom.  A thrill  of  horror,  and  unspeakable 
dread  seized  him  as  he  saw  the  awful  place  where  the 
Divine  Presence  dwelt  exposed  to  his  gaze.  No  duty 
could  detain  him.  No  prudence  could  keep  his  mouth 
closed.  He  would  rush  out.  He  would  tell  the  awful  fact- 
The  crowds  would  scatter.  The  tidings  would  be  borne 
everywhere  on  the  wings  of  the  wind.  And  when,  on 


Beata  cujus  brachiis 
Pretium  prependit  ssBCuli, 
Statera  facta  sseculi 
Prsedamque  tulit  tartaris. 

O crux  ave,  spes  unica! 
Hoc  passionis  tempora, 
Auge  piis  institiam 
Reisque  dona  veniam. 


On  whose  dear  arms,  so  widely 
flung, 

The  weight  of  this  world’s  ran- 
som hung: 

The  price  of  human  kind  to  pay, 

And  spoil  the  Spoiler  of  his 
prey. 

O Cross,  our  one  reliance,  hail ! 

This  holy  Passion-tide,  avail 

To  give  fresh  merit  to  the  saints 

And  pardon  to  the  penitent. 


232 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


the  next  day,  the  Sabbath,  the  white-robed,  turbaned, 
barc-footed  priests  would  be  busy  with  their  sacrifices, 
the  former  done  away — for  the  types  had  been  all 
fulfilled  in  the  Antitype — with  what  misgivings  must 
they  have  gone  through  the  service!  That  rent  veil 
must  have  suggested,  ^‘You  have  killed  the  Messiah.’’ 
And  it  may  be  that  this  was  one  of  the  reasons  which 
moved  the  priests  to  go  on  that  same  day  to  Pilate,  to  ask 
him  to  prevent  His  resurrection  by  giving  a command 
to  make  the  sepulchre  sure,  by  putting  his  seal  upon 
it,  and  by  a guard  of  soldiers  to  keep  all  intruders  away. 

In  the  Hebrews  (vi,  19;  xi,  2,  3,  6-9,  24;  x,  19,  20,) 
the  profound  symbolical  import  of  this  phenomenon  is 
made  clear.  The  veil  shadowed  forth  the  Body  of  J esus 
as  the  God-Man.  His  Body  was  the  veil  to  His  Divin- 
ity. Behind  it  His  glory  was  hidden.  The  faith  of  a 
few  only,  while  He  was  living,  pierced  through  that 
veil,  and  saw  in  Him  the  majesty  of  God.  But  the 
Body  being  rent,  the  way  was  open  for  the  manifesta- 
tion of  Divine  glory  and  majesty.  And  these  have 
ever  since  streamed  forth  to  all  believers. 

The  rending  of  this  veil  was  the  removal  of  all  hin- 
drances of  access  to  God.  The  veil  debarred  all  ap- 
proach of  the  people  directly  into  the  Holy  of  Holies. 
Being  rent  to  the  bottom,  the  least  and  lowest  now  may 
enter.  Being  rent  from  the  top,  and  by  the  same  hand 
that  opened  the  graves,  all  hindrances  now  from  the 


Te  summa  Deus  Trinitas 
Oollaudet  omnis  spiritus 
Quas  per  crucis  mysterium 
Salves,  rege  per  ssecula. 


To  Thee,  Eternal  Three  in  One, 
Let  homage  meet  by  all  be  done ; 
Whom  by  the  cross  Thou  dost 
restore, 

Preserve  and  govern  evermore. 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


233 


pHin  of  sin  to  the  heights  of  glory,  are  removed.  All 
exclusive  privileges  are  obliterated.  All  distinctions 
of  the  flesh  are  at  an  end.  The  flrst  covenant,  ^^with 
its  ministration  of  death”  is  superseded  by  the  second 
covenant,  “with  its  ministration  of  life.”  Henceforth, 
no  intervening  human  priest,  nor  gradual  fltting  is 
needed  to  enable  one  to  come  nigh  to  God.  By  the 
blood,  and  through  the  rent  veil,  may  any  one,  at  one 
step,  pass  from  the  deepest  degradation  and  rise  into 
grace,  into  the  presence  of  God,  into  heaven  itself. 

A second  phenomenon,  simultaneous  with  Jesus’ 
death,  was  the  EARTHQUAKE.  The  genuineness 
and  authenticity  of  this  passage  are  undisputed.  On 
no  critical  grounds  can  the  fact  be  rejected.  It  has  in 
it  nothing  mythical  or  apocryphal.  All  who  bow  to 
the  majesty  ot  the  whole  scene  as  a fact,  must  bow  to 
the  truth  of  this  feature.  For  it  is  no  more  difficult 
to  believe  that  these  saints  were  raised,  than  that  Jesus 
arose  from  among  the  dead. 

This  earthquake  was  limited  in  its  extent,  and  pecu- 
liar in  its  action.  The  earth  was  shaken,  but  not  As- 
sured. The  rocks  were  rent.  The  verb  is  the  same  as 
that  used  to  describe  the  rending  of  the  veil.  Fissures 
in  the  rocks  at  the  real,  or  supposed,  place  of  crucifix- 
ion are  still  pointed  out  as  the  effects  of  that  disturb- 
ance. The  rock-hewn  sepulchres  near  by,  whose  en- 
trances were  closed,  each,  by  a large  stone,  were  opened. 
Ko  natural  causes  can  account  for  these  convulsions  which 
were,  as  the  facts  indicate,  connected  with  the  region 
of  the  dead.  Were  they  not  caused  by  the  entrance  of 


234 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


Jesus’  soul  into  that  region,  going  there  in  the  might 
and  majesty  of  His  finished  work?  (Acts  ii,  2,  7,  31.) 
He,  in  the  power  and  triumph  of  His  atonement,  en- 
tered into  Hades,  and  opened  the  doors  of  the  tomb. 
‘^^The  graves  were  opened” — a divine  assurance  that 
Jesus  had  broken  the  bands  of  death.  The  being  un- 
conquered by  the  power  of  death  and  the  grave,  was  an 
essential  characteristic  of  Him  who  had  been  promised 
to  David  as  Israel’s  King.  Hence,  Hades  could  not 
detain  Him,  nor  could  corruption  invade  His  Body. 
(Acts  ii.)  Remaining  in  Hades  the  allotted  time.  He 
received  His  Body  again.  To  show  that  He  came  forth 
the  all-conquering  Jesus,  He  brought  with  Him  to 
their  bodies  the  souls  of  many  sleeping  saints.  He 
sent  the  vivifying  power  of  His  death  into  their 
soomatct^  bodies,  and  these  came  forth  from  the  tombs 
which  had  been  opened  by  His  death — symbol,  type, 
divine  assurance  all  this,  that  ^^all  that  are  in  their 
graves  shall  hear  His  voice,  and  shall  come  forth.” 
These  saints,  after  Jesus’  resurrection,  came  out  of 
their  graves  and  went  up  into  Jerusalem,  and  appeared 
unto  many.  They  may  have  been  those  who,  like 
Simeon,  longed  for  the  salvation  of  Jesus.  These  were 
the  first  to  taste  the  full  fruits  of  His  death,  and  the 
power  of  life  brought  in  by  His  resurrection.  And  to 
it  their  appearance  gave  confirmation,  meaning  and 
force.  The  six  hitherto  recorded  resurrections  had 
been  miracles.  Brought  back  to  present  life,  the  per- 
sons had  died  again.  But  these  “many,”  the  first  fruits 
of  Jesus’  resurrection,  the  proof  and  type  of  the  resur* 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


235 


recti  on  of  tlie  saints  at  His  second  coming,  were — so  all 
the  circumstances  lead  me  to  believe — clothed  in  their 
resurrection  bodies,  and  with,  or  just  after  Jesus,  as- 
cended to  heaven. 

3.  Another  fact  is  THE  IMPEESSION  WHICH 
THE  DEATH  OF  JESUS  AND  THE  ATTEND- 
ANT PHENOMENA  MADE  UPON  THE  CEN- 
TUEION,  SOLDIEES  AND  LOOKEES  ON.  The 
Eoman  centurion  stood  exenantias  auton,  on  the  oppo- 
site side,  i,  ^.,  directly  in  front  of  Jesus,  and  was  care- 
fully and  closely  watching  Him.  He  heard  the  prayer, 
^‘Father,  into  Thy  hands,  &c.,”  and  the  loud  cry.  He 
saw  the  bowing  of  the  head,  the  instant  ceasing  of 
breathing,  and  the  earthquake.  About  this  death  there 
was  something  extraordinary — expressed  by  Mark’s 
houtoos  cried  out.”  It  made  a deep  impression  on 
the  noble  soldier.  He  had  beheld  death  in  its  every 
form:  in  battle,  in  gladiatorial  shows,  on  the  cross; 
but  never  a death  like  this.  He  had  heard  wounded  men 
groan  and  die ; but  never  before,  from  the  dying,  a clear, 
loud,  full-voiced  cry  in  which  there  was  no  shriek  of 
pain  or  terror.  Never  before  saw  he  a crucified  man 
show  such  full  vigor  of  the  vital  organs  to  the  last,  one 
who  died  in  so  few  hours  after  crucifixion.  This  was 
utterly  unlike  common  dying.  Eeflecting,  in  the  light 
of  these  facts,  on  what  he  had  heard  and  seen,  the  im- 
pressions already  made  that  day  upon  his  mind  w^ere  con- 
firmed. In  the  hearing  of  all,  he  glorified  God,  and 
exclaimed,  ‘Uertainly  this  Man  was  just;”  and  being 
just,  ^‘Surely  He  was  Theou  why  os  ^ God’s  Son.”  He 


236 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


-ould  only  attacli  to  this  phrase  that  meaning  which  he 
had  heard  given  it  on  that  day,  in  accusation  (John  xix, 
7)  in  derision,  and  in  Jesus’  twice  addressing  God  as 
His  Father.  Jesus’  death>hour  was  this  soldier’s  birth- 
hour.  He  was  .the  first  German  convert,  and  this  was 
his  own  confession  of  faith.  Thus  he,  as  the  heathen  al- 
ways did,  announced  his  conversion.  Thus  was  Jesus’ 
prayer  for  His  crucifiers  already  answered.  Thus  was 
His  death  already,  for  the  second  time,  bearing  fruit. 

The  impression  upon  the  soldiers  was  that  of  fear. 
‘^They  feared  greatly.”  Their  mockery  was  instantly 
hushed.  That  made  upon  the  beholders  was  one  of  alarm.. 
They  came  theoria^  to  that  spectacle,  out  of  curiosity. 
They  were  an  ochlos^  a very  great  crowd.  Long  before 
this  time  the  whole  city  was  astir  with  excitement. 
And  the  vast  concourse  of  strangers  gathered  to  the 
Passover,  with  the  citizens,  had  poured  out  to  Calvary, 
until  every  available  space  was  occupied.  They,  too, 
saw  the  things  which  were  done.  Those  awful  portents 
tilled  them  with  alarm.  They  interpreted  them  as  evi- 
dences of  Divine  displeasure,  and  recognized  their  own 
guilt  in  the  tragedy.  They  smote  upon  their  breasts, 
and  tied  from  the  scene.  It  was  the  hour  of  awakening 
from  the  frenzy  of  the  morning.  Jesus’  blameless  and 
beneficent  life,  and  gracious  words,  were  recalled.  True 
mourning  now  filled  many  hearts,  prelude  and  prepara- 
tive for  Pentecost.  (See  my  work  on  the  Holy  Spirit.) 
And  as  they  hurried  away,  they  left  Jesus’  acquaint- 
ances and  female  friends,  who  stood  afar  oft‘  beholding, 
but  over  whose  deep  and  varied  emotions  the  historians 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


237 


throw  the  veil  of  silence.  As  for  the  apostles,  all  except 
John,  had  disappeared,  long  before  this,  from  the  scene, 
leaving  on  the  narrative  not  a single  trace. 

ANOTHEK  EXTEAOEDINAEY  PHEXOME^ 
NON  WAS  THE  FLOWING  EOETH  OF  THE 
BLOOD  AND  WATEE  FEOM  JESUS’  PIEECED 
SIDE.  The  Eoman  law  allowed  criminals  to  remain 
on  the  cross  until  the  body  was  decayed,  or  devoured 
by  birds  of  prey.  The  Jewish  law  required  the  body 
hanged  for  exposure,  to  be  put  out  of  sight  before 
sundown.  This  Vas  done  from  considerations  partly  of 
humanity,  partly  of  ceremonial  purity,  that  the  Holy 
Land  might  not  be  polluted  by  the  curse  attached  to  the 
lifeless  body  of  one  accursed.  (Dent,  xxi,  22,  23;  Josh, 
viii,  27;  x,  36.)  Hence  the  introduction  of  the  cruci- 
fragium^  i.  ^.,  the  shattering  of  the  legs  by-  a club. 
The  obj^ect  of  this  infliction  was  to  hasten  death. 
Hence,  though  as  harsh  and  brutal  as  crucifixion  itself, 
(Lactantius,  Inst,  iv,  26),  it  was  called  the  ^^mercy 
stroke.”  The  ordinary  motive  for  the  enforcement  of 
the  law  had,  in  the  present  case,  a peculiar  emphasis. 
The  Sabbath  was  the  chief  holiday  of  the  Jews.  Every 
other  festivity  falling  on  that  day  added  to  its  impor- 
tance. The  coincidence  of  the  second  solemn  passover 
day  with  the  incoming  Sabbath,  now  only  three  hours  off, 
gave  it  exceptional  solemnity.  Megalee  hee  heemera 
eheinou  ton  saihatou^  great  was  the  day  of  that  Sab- 
bath. Because,  therefore,  gar^  this  Friday,  was  the 
preparation- day  (John  xix,  31;  see  also  v,  14),  there- 
fore, &c.  Mark  (xv,  42,)  deflnes  this  “preparation”  as 


238  THE  HOLY  DEATH. 

the  day  before  the  Sabbath,  the Sabbath,  i,  e.^  the  time 
inmediately  preceding,  and  which  was  devoted  to  prep- 
aration for,  the  Sabbath.  It  is,  in  the  Talmud,  called 
eve  of  the  Sabbath,  and  the  Greek  word  for  it,  paras- 
lieuee^  is,  in  the  Syriac  Version  uniformly  translated 
eve.  The  Hebrew  word  for  ‘^preparation’’  was,  in  the 
later  days  of  the  Hebrew  Commonwealth,  the  name 
given,  in  popular  usage,  to  the  whole  day  before  the 
Sabbath,  i.  Friday.  (Buxtorf,  Lex.  1659.)  And  this 
seems  to  be  the  meaning  of  the  word,  paraskeiiee  in 
John  xix,  14,  the  preparation  day  of  an  high  Sabbath. 
The  first  thought  of  the  Jews  was  the  death  of  Jesus. 
Their  next  one  was  concern  for  the  ceremonial  law. 
“That  the  bodies  might  not  remain  upon  the  cross  on 
that  Sabbath,”  some  members  of  the  Sanhedrim,  headed 
by  Caiaphas,  most  probably,  went  to  Pilate,  and 
“besought  him  that  their  legs  might  be  broken,  and 
they  be  taken  away.” 

The  breaking  of  the  legs  did  not  cause  immediate 
death,  but  made  it  speedy  and  certain.  Gangrene  was 
the  inevitable  result.  And  this  made  all  resuscitation 
impossible.  This  would  make  Pilate  legally  safe  in 
allowing  the  bodies  to  be  taken  down  so  soon  after  cru- 
cifixion. And  he,  therefore,  could,  out  of  respect  to  the 
religious  scruples  of  the  Jews,  grant  the  request.  He 
at  once  sent  an  order  to  the  centurion  who  had  charge 
of  the  execution,  and  it  was  promptly  obeyed.  The 
soldiers,  with  a strong  club,  broke  the  legs  of  the  two 
thieves.  But  when  they  came  to  Jesus,  they  saw  that 
He  was  dead  already,  and  so  broke  not  His  legs.  Ex- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


239 


cept  the  piercing,  the  sacred  Body  suffered  no  mutila- 
tion. But  as  a compensation  for  not  breaking  the  legs, 
one  of  the  soldiers,  with  his  spear,  pierced  His  side,  and 
euthus^  immediately,  there  can^e  out  blood  and  water. 

These  two  facts  are  emphasized  as  very  extraordinary 
and  very  important.  The  writer  gives  a personal  as- 
surance of  their  reality,  and  of  the  accuracy  of  his 
statement.  He  saw,  and  so  bears  testimony  to,  the  oc- 
currences. He  declares  that  the  substance  of  His  testi- 
mony is  aleethenee^  essential  truth,  and  that  the  form 
of  it  is  aleethee^  true.  And  he  records  the  assurance 
with  the  fact,  in  order  that  the  reader  may  clearly  see  the 
already  accomplished  atonement,  and  along  with  it  the 
reality  of  the  Messiahship,  and  the  glory  of  the  Person, 
of  Jesus,  now  in  the  state  of  deepest  abasement. 

Imagine  yourself  standing  by  John,  and  with  him 
knowing  these  two  important  prophetic  facts  concern- 
ing the  Messiah:  (a)  ^^not  a bone  of  Him  shall  be  brok- 
en,” (Ex.  xii,  46;  Hum.  ix,  12;  Ps.  xxiv,  20);  and  (b) 
‘^they  shall  look  on  Him  whom  they  pierced.”  (Zech^ 
xii-xiii.)  You  see  Jesus  and  His  friends  are  powerless 
as  to  their  fulfillment.  You  see  the  soldiers  coming  with 
an  order  from  Pilate — both  ignorant  of  the  prophesies — 
to  break  the  legs  of  the  three.  You  see  them  break 
the  legs  of  the  two,  but  not  those  of  Jesus.  You  see 
further  that  Jesus’  side  is  seven  or  eight  feet  from 
the  ground,  that  the  soldiers  standing  on  His  left  side, 
probably,  gives  an  upward  thrust  of  his  spear,  which 
enters  pleureen^  the  side,  between,  or  below,  the  ribs,  and 
penetrates  some  distance,  (the  verb,  enuxee^  signifies 


240 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


not  a cut,  but  a thrust,  more  or  less  deep,)  perhaps,  to 
the  pericardium,  that  it  makes  a gash  large  enough 
to  admit  the  hand  (J ohn  xx,  27),  and  that  immediately 
after  the  thrust  two  substances  are  seen  by  you,  and  by  all 
beholders,  not  flowing,  but  exelthen^  coming  out,  simul- 
taneously, yet  distinct,  which  are  not  seemingly  like, 
but  really  are,  blood  and  water.  The  amazing  specta- 
cle profoundly  impresses  you.  You  instantly  recall  that 
such  a thing  happens  not  to  one  so  long  dead  as  Jesus 
then  was.  You  seek  a solution  of  this  exceedingly  sur- 
prising, and  on  ordinary  physiological  principles  inex- 
plicable, phenomenon.  Let  us  see  if  we  can  find  one. 

Jesus  died  at  3 P.  M.  He  was  buried  before  sunset 
— the  beginning  that  day  of  the  Jewish  Sabbath — 
which,  in  that  latitude  and  month,  was  about  6 P.  M. 
Joseph  did  not  go  to  Pilate  until  after  this  piercing, 
^John  xix,  38).  Between  the  piercing  and  the  taking 
down  of  the  Body,  and  the  preparing  of  it  for  burial 
more  than  an  hour  must  have  elapsed.  From  these 
considerations  we  infer  that  the  piercing  must  have  oc. 
curred  within  about  one  half  hour  after  His  death.  Out 
through  this  cut  came  aima  hai  Tiudor^  not  crassamen- 
tum  and  serum,  for  these  are  neither  blood  nor  water — 
but  blood  and  water.*  Hence,'  the  explanation  which 
resolves  these  words  into  those  things,  and  attempts  to 

[*As  this  work  was  going  through  the  press,  Dr.  J.  P.  Mills, 
of  our  city,  sent  me  the  following  note:  “The  inner  surface  of  the 
pericardium  (the  fibro  serous  sac,  which  surrounds  the  heart,  and 
in  which  it  plays^,  is  smooth  and  glistening,  and  secretes  a thin 
fluid,  which  serves  to  facilitate  the  movements  of  the  heart.  The 
normal  quantity  of  pericardial  fluid,  which  is  water,  is  usually 
estimated  at  from  one  to  two  fluid  drachms.” 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


241 


account  for  the  fact  on  physiological  principles,  solely,  is 
unsatisfactory.  Besides  this,  in  an  ordinary  corpse  such 
a thrust  would  never  be  followed  by  any  such  outflowing. 

No  explanation  that  ignores  the  fact  that  Jesus’  hu- 
manity was  not,  like  ours,  tainted  by  sin,  is  satisfactory. 
It  was  sinless ; therefore  could  not  see  corruption.  (Acts 
ii.)  His  blood,  therefore,  could  not  be  resolved  into  se- 
rum and  crassamentum.  But  the  body  which  had  been 
transflgured  on  Hermon  could,  and  the  instant  after 
death  did  begin  to,  undergo  that  transformation  which, 
thirty-six  hours  afterward,  was  completed  in  resurrec- 
tion. Of  that  fact  this  fact  is  an  evidence.  The  blood 
and  water  showed  an  unexampled  vital  reaction  at  the 
moment  when,  in  every  other  body,  dissolution  begins. 
Their  coming  out,  like  the  loud  cry  with  which  He  gave 
up  His  life,  not  wrung  from  Him  like  it  is  from  a 
sinner,  is  proof,  physical  and  moral,  that  His  was  an 
untainted  life  over  which  neither  sin  nor  death  could 
have  any  control,  and  which,  being  voluntarily  given 
up,  must  triumph  over  death.  The  organism,  hence, 
in  which  that  life  dwelt,  must  have  the  power  of  re- 
action from  which  Divine  power  could  draw  forth  life 
again,  as  legitimately,  and  as  necessarily,  as  sin  brings 
forth  death  in  others.  The  flowing  of  the  blood  and 
water  was  proof,  was  it  not,  that  the  resurrection 
jife  was  already  beginning  its  action?  And  further? 
as  we  have  already  remarked,  all  the  blood  is,  at  the 
moment  of  death,  poured  out  of  the  heart  into  the 
vessels  around  it,  in  ordinary  persons  involuntarily,  but, 
in  the  case  of  Jesus,  by  His  own  act.  And,  hence,  the 


242 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


coming  out  of  the  blood  was  conspicuous  proof  to  the 
universe,  that  He  had  already  fulfilled  all  the  physical 
conditions  of  that  blood-shedding  by  which  He  was  to 
make  an  atonement  for  sin.  And  in  these  things,  and  as 
also  for  the  fulfillment  of  Scripture — but  not  for  the 
proving  either  that  Jesus  had  a true  body,  or  was  really 
dead  (John  xix,  33) — do  we  see  the  significancy,  and  the 
ends  accomplished  by  the  piercing  of  Jesus’  side.  How^ 
to  you  standing  by  the  cross,  and  witnessing  the  scenes, 
and  recalling  also  the  prophets — if  this  explanation  be 
satisfactory — comes  the  instant  realization  that  Jesus  is 
the  true  anti-type  of  the  Paschal  lamb;  that  this  is  the 
pierced  One  of  whom  the  prophet  spake.  The  historic 
features  are  so  plain  that  you  instantly  realize  the  pro- 
phetic ones : that,  in  an  on-coming  day,  repentant  Israel 
shall,  with  the  looking  and  weeping  so  magnificently 
described  by  the  prophet,  recognize  J esus  as  their  Mes- 
siah, and  own  and  receive  Him  as  their  King 

Section  XIII. 

JESUS^  BURIAL. 

Matt,  xxvii,  57-61 ; Mark  xv,  42-47 ; Luke  xxiii,  50-56 ; J ohn  xix, 

88-42. 

And  behold  there  was  a rich  man,  named  Joseph,  of 
Arimathea,  a city  of  the  Jews.  {lie  was  Tcnown  as) 
Joseph  of  Arimathea.  He  was  a good  man,  and  just: 
an  honorable  counsellor,  (the  same  had  not  consented 
to  the  counsel  and  deed  ot  them),  who  himself  also  was 
Jesus’  disciple,  but  secretly,  for  fear  of  the  Jews,  who 
also  waited  for  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

And  now  after  this,  when  the  even  was  come,  be- 
cause it  was  the  preparation,  that  is.  the  day  before  the 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


243 


Sabbatli,  this  man  came,  and  went  in  boldly  unto  Pi- 
late, and  begged  {same  word  in  Greeh  in  all  the  four 
evangelists)^  the  body  of  J esus,  that  he  might  take  it 


And  Pilate  marvelled  if  he  were  already  dead  and 
calling  unto  him  the  centurion,  he  asked  him  whether 
he  had  been  any  time  dead,  and  when  he  knew  it  of  the 
centurion,  then  Pilate  gave  leave — gave  the  body  to  Jo- 
seph— and  commanded  it  to  be  delivered. 

The  Pody  taken  down.]  He,  having  bought  fine 
linen,  came  i:herefore,  and  took  the  body  of  Jesus. 

And  there  came  also  Nicodemus,  which  at  the  first 
came  to  Jesus  by  night,  and  brought  a mixture  of 
myrrh  and  aloes,  about  a hundred  pounds  weight. 

Prepared  for  burial.]  And  when  he  had  taken  the 
Body  down,  they  wound  and  wrapped  it  in  the  clean 
linen  cloth  with  the  spices,  as  the  manner  of  the  Jews 
is  to  bury. 

Place  of  burial.]  Now  in  the  place  where  He  was 
crucified  there  was  a garden;  and  in  the  garden  a new 
sepulchre,  wherein  was  man  never  yet  before  laid — 
his  {i,  ^.,  Joseph'* s)  own  new  tomb,  which  he  had  hewn 
[Burial.]  out  of  in  a rock.  There  they  laid  Jesus  there- 
fore, because  of  the  Jews’  preparation:  {for)  that  day 
was  the  preparation  and  the  Sabbath  drew  on:  for  the 
sepulchre  was  nigh  at  hand.  And  he  rolled  a great 
stone  unto  the  door  of  the  sepulchre,  and  departed. 

The  faithful  watchers.]  And  the  women  also  which 
came  with  Him  from  Galilee,  Mary  Magdalene,  and 
the  other  Mary,  the  mother  of  Joses,  followed  after. 
And  sitting  over  against  the  sepulchre,  they  beheld 
the  sepulchre,  and  where  and  how  the  Body  was  laid. 

And  they  returned  and  prepared  spices  and  ointments ; 
and  rested  the  Sabbath  day,  according  to  the  command- 
ment. 


244 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


On  Saturday,  April  8tli,  Pilate  ordered  a ) Now  the 
guard  of  soldiers  to  watch  the  tomb  of  Jesus.  J next  day 
that  followed  the  day  of  the  preparation,  the  chief 
priests  and  Pharisees  came  together  unto  Pilate,  saying. 
Sir,  we  remember  that  the  deceiver  said  while  He  was 
yet  alive.  After  three  days  I will  rise  again.  Command 
therefore  that  the  sepulchre  be  made  sure  until  the 
third  day,  least  His  disciples  come  by  night,  and  steal 
Him  away,  and  say  unto  the  people.  He  is  risen  from 
the  dead:  so  the  last  error  shall  be  worse  than  the  first. 

Pilate  said  unto  them,  Ye  have  a watch:  go  your 
way,  make  it  as  sure  as  ye  can. 

So  they  went,  and  made  the  sepulchre  sure,  sealing 
the  stone,  and  setting  a watch. 

n 

In  the  first  of  the  two  evenings  of  the  Jews,  i.  ^.,  be- 
tween 3 P.  M.  and  sunset  (the  second  , was  between 
sunset  and  dark),  there  was  added  another  to  the  many 
surprises  of  that  eventful  day.  The  granting  of  the 
Sanhedrim’s  request  concerning  the  breaking  of  the  legs 
of  the  crucified,in  volved  the  burial  of  Jesus  in  an  ignomin- 
ous  grave.  But  prophecy  had  proclaimed  that  the  Messiah 
should  be  buried  in  an  honorable  tomb:  ^‘He  made 

His  grave  with the  rich  in  His  death:”  ^‘With 

the  rich  man  was  His  tomb,”  is  the  literal  rendering  of 
the  Hebrew.  (Is.  liii.)  Jesus’  disciples  had  no  such 
tomb,  and  were  utterly  powerless  to  fulfill  this  proph- 
ecy. But  God’s  purpose,  which  must  ever  stand,  was 
accomplished  through  a most  unexpected  agency. 
Those  awful  deeds,  which  had  wrecked  the  hopes  and 
energized  the  fears  of  the  disciples,  now  inspired  the  faith, 
and  nerved  the  hearts  of  two  men,  members  of  the  San- 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  245 

liedrim,  and  of  the  Jewish  aristocracy.  And  the  courage 
of  their  conduct  was  sublime. 

One  of  them,  Joseph,  belonged  to  the  class  of  nobler 
Jewish  minds.  He  was  now  a resident  of  Jerusalem. 
His,  as  it  had  been  Samuel’s,  (1  Sam.  i,  19,  Sept.) 
birth-place,  was  Arimathea,  a town  reposing  amid  the 
fruitful  hills  of  Ephraim,  and  this  fact  gave  him  his  des- 
ignation. He  was  a man  of  sterling  character  and  great 
influence,  as  his  honorable  mention,  in  all  the  Gospels, 
shows.  He  was  rich.  He,  as  was  Hicodemus,  was 
archoon^  a ruler,  and  iouleutees^  a counsellor.  He  was 
also  euscheemoon.^  honorable,  in  both  character  and 
position.  His  ofiicial  was  the  counterpart  of  his  pri- 
vate character.  ^^He  was  agathos^  good,”  i.  virtuous 
and  benevolent,  ‘‘kai  dihaios^  and  just,”  i.  ^.,  upright  in 
private  and  official  conduct.  Luke’s  ^^good  man  and 
just”  is  the  Greek  ideal  of  halos  agathos;  Mark’s 
^ffionorable  counsellor”  is  the  Roman  ideal  of  a senator; 
and  Matthew’s  “rich  man”  is  the  Jewish  ideal  of  a 
successful  man.  Thus,  he  w^as  a man  who  united  in 
himself  the  characteristic  features  of  the  three  cultures. 
To  these  were  added  those  of  a still  loftier  type.  The 
Sadducees  looked  for  nothing,  the  Pharisees  for  an  out- 
ward triumph,  from  the  Messiah.  But  there  were  the 
true  “faithful”  wffio  knew,  and  kept  in  mind  and  heart  the 
words  of  the  prophets,  sighed  for  the  abominations  in 
Jerusalem,  and  longed  and  hoped  for  deliverance,  con- 
solation and  salvation.  To  this  class,  of  which  Simeon 
and  Anna,  the  prophetess,  were  representatives,  Josepli 
belonged:  “He  waited  for  the  Kingdom  of  God.”  This 


2i6 


TPIE  HOLY  DEATH. 


led  him  to  look  for  the  true  Messiah.  Candidly,  care- 
fully, earnestly,  he  studied  the  claims  of  Jesus.  From 
honest  doubt  to  intelligent  conviction  the  progress  had 
been  slow,  but  sure.  He,  for  some  time,  had  recogn- 
ized Him  as  Messiah,  and  himself  as  His  disciple. 
But  he  wanted  the  courage, of  his  opinions.  He  dared 
not  identify  himself  with  One  whom  the  Sanhedrim 
had  excommunicated.  ‘‘He  was  a disciple  of  Jesus, 
but  secretly,  for  fear  of  the  Jews.”  Never,  perhaps, 
before  his  action  on  this  day — in  “not  consenting  to  the 
vote  and  plan  of  the  council” — had  his  position  been 
suspected.  And  when  it  became  known,  the  amaze- 
ment in  the  city,  and  the  consternation  in  the  Sanhe- 
drim, must  have  been  very  great.  It  was,  doubtless, 
one  of  the  facts  which  led  to  the  determination  to  have 
a guard  set  around  the  tomb. 

He  had  been  present,  perhaps,  at  the  trial  before 
Pilate.  He  had  seen  and  heard  all  that  was  done  and 
said  on  Calvary.  His  previous  convictions  concerning 
Jesus  were  confirmed.  His  faith  rapidly  grew  very 
strong,  and  gave  him  a courage  which  has  commanded 
the  admiration  of  all  men.  Braving  all  consequences, 
he,  now  when  Jesus  was  dead,  did  that  which  he  had 
not  the  courage  to  do  while  Jesus  lived — confess  Him 
as  the  Christ.  This  confession  was  an  act  of  high  sub- 
limity. And  the  circumstances  under  which,  and  the 
extraordinary  manner  in  which,  it  was  made,  invest  it 
with  peculiar  interest  and  significancy. 

Seemingly,  Jesus  was  in  the  deepest  disgrace,  and  His 
cause  was  hopelessly  lost.  The  legal  maxim,  “The  dus^ 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


247 


of  the  guilty  must  not  mingle  with  the  dust  of  the 
just/’  denied  Jewish  criminals  a resting-place  in  the 
sepulchres  of  their  fathers.  They  had,  and  Jesus  must 
have,  if  the  Sanhedrim  got  possession  of  the  Body,  a 
disgraceful  burial  in  the  valley  of  Hinnom.  And  if  it 
was  left  to  Pilate,  it  would  be  buried  along  with  the 
bodies  of  the  malefactors  in  some  dishonored  spot.* 
Such  an  indignity  to  the  Sacred  Body  was  to  Joseph  a 
piercing  thought.  It  must,  if  possible,  be  prevented. 
It  could  be  only  by  Pilate’s  permission.  For,  the  lio- 
man  law,  which  gave,  in  Pome,  the  body  of  the  con- 
demned up  to  friends,  placed  it,  in  the  provinces,  at  the 
disposal  of  the  procurator.  (Ulpian.)  His  consent,  for 
its  removal  by  friends,  depended  upon  his  humor.  At 
a later  day,  a petitioner  who  asked  the  procurator 
Firmilian,  for  the  body  of  the  martyred  presbyter, 
Pamphylius,  was,  by  his  order,  seized  and  executed. 
Pilate  sometimes,  at  this  feast,  gave  the  friends  the 
body.  (Philo.)  But  his  temper  now  was  uncertain.  He 
might  grant,  or  he  might  deny.  The  making,  and 
especially  the  granting,  of  the  request  by  Joseph  would 
involve  him  in  serious  consequences.  The  act  would 
certainly  bring  down  on  him  the  execration  of  the  San- 
hedrim, his  expulsion  from  their  body,  and  his  excom- 
munication from  the  Jewish  church.  He  must  handle 
the  corpse.  And  this  would  render  him  ceremonially 

[*The  words,  “that  they,”  i.  6.,  the  bodies,  “might  be  taken 
away,”  are  somewhat  indefinite.  The  granting  of  the  Jews’  re- 
quest may  have  carried  with  it  permission  for  them  to  have  the- 
bodies  taken  down  and  buried;  or  an  assurance  to  them  that 
Pilate  would  have  it  done.] 


248 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


unclean,  and  make  unclean  everything  he  touched  for 
u period  of  seven  days.  Thus  would  he  exclude  him- 
self from  all  the  high  solemnities  of  the  Passover  week. 

Joseph  knew  all  this.  He  had,  after  Jesus’  death, 
gone  back  to  the  city.  And  unless  the  whole  thing 
flashed  suddenly  on  his  mind  when  eelthen^  became,  i, 
to  Calvary,  in  the  ‘^flrst  evening”  (Matt,  vs,  27),  he  must 
have  1 esol ved  to  act  while  on  his  way  from  and  to  the  holy 
hill.  He  saw  that  the  malefactors,  whose  legs  were 
now  broken,  must  soon  die.  In  a little  while  all  the 
bodies  must  be  taken  down,  and  buried.  If  anything 
was  done,  it  must  be  done  quickly,  and  by  himself.  For 
the  panic-stricken  disciples  had  no  influence  with  the  au- 
thorities, and  no  heart  to  meet  the  resentment  of  the 
Sanhedrim,  or  to  face  Pilate  with  any  request.  Weigh- 
ing all  possible  consequences  to  himself,  he  determined 
to  act — showing  that  the  constraining  love  of  Christ 
was  already  bearing  fruit.  Mark,  in  his  eelthen  tol- 
meesas^  ....  eiseelthen  pros  Pilaton^  forcibly  brings 
out  this  thought.  Ha\  ing  come,  i,  ^.,  to  Calvary,  and 
tolmeesas^  having  brought  himself  to  act,  eiseelthen^  he 
went  boldly  to  Pilate.  It  was  an  act  which,  under  the 
circumstances,  required  great  courage.  He  hastened 
from  Calvary  into  the  city,  and  pressed  himself  into 
Pilate’s  presence.  Then,  remembering  his  place  as  a 
subject  in  the  presence  of  the  ruling  power,  he,  in  an 
earnest,  but  most  respectful,  manner,  erotaoo^  (John) 
<iiteo  (the  Syn.),  besought  Pilate  to  give  him  the  Body 
i)t  Jesus. 

As  it  was  too  soon  for  death  to  naturally  follow  from 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


249 


crucifixion,  Pilate  was  surprised  to  hear  that  Jesus  was 
already  dead.  He  dared  not,  before  being  officially  as- 
sured of  His  death,  allow  the  Body  to  be  taken  down. 
He  therefore  sent  for  the  centurion  who  had  charge  of 
the  execution,  and  asked  him  whether  J esus  had  been 
any  time  dead.  When  he  heard  from  him  that  Jesus 
really  was  dead,  he  did  not,  as  did  Verres,  require 
money  before  he  would  deliver  the  body  of  one  con- 
demned to  friends  (Cicero  ad  Yerram^^  but  as  a mark  of 
complacency  to  a member  of  the  Council  who  showed 
such  deep  regard  for  Jesus,  he  edoreesato^  freely  gave, 
made  a present  of,  the  Body  to  Joseph.  He  had  al- 
ready, at  the  request  of  the  Jews,  given  permission  for 
the  taking  down  of  all  the  bodies.  How  he  gave  an 
order  (Matt.)  to  the  centurion  to  deliver  the  sacred 
Body  to  Joseph. 

It  must  now  have  been  near  5 P.  M.  The  Sabbath 
would  commence  at  6.  Having  no  time  to  lose,  he 
hastened  from  the  Pretorium  into  some  store  on  the 
way,  where  he  bought  fine  linen  for  the  burial,  and  with 
it  sped  his  way  to  Calvary.  Having  shown  his  author- 
ity to  the  centurion,  he  at  once  proceeded  to  his  sad 
labor  of  love.  The  Body  was  too  sacred  a trust  to  be 
handled  by  rude  and  unleeling  soldiers  or  servants. 
^‘He,  himself,  took  it  down.”^ 

He  ascends  the  cross  by  a ladder  set  against  it.  Fir^t 

[*Mark’s  kathaireo  is  the  technical  word  for  taking  down 
bodies  from  the  cross.  John’s  eere^  took,  is  from  airoo^  the  root  verb. 
In  vs.  38  (xix),  where  John  speaks  of  taking  the  body  for  embalm- 
ing, he  uses  another  verb,  lambano.  Katatliithenai  is  the  technical 
word  for  placing  bodies  in  the  tomb.] 


250 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


he  tied  a strong  cord  around  the  Body  under  the  arms, 
and  threw  it  over  the  cross-beam,  so  that  the  Body 
might  be  gently  let  down  thereby.  Then,  tenderly  as 
possible,  he  loosened  the  feet  and  hands  from  the  nails, 
and  untied  the  cords  which  had  bound  the  body  to  the 


cross.  Then  he  received  it,  gently  lowered,  into  his 
hands,  and  laid  it  on  the  ground. 

Just  as  this  was  done,  John  tells  us  that  another  man 
appeared  upon  the  scene.  He  sympathized,  and  was 
identified,  with  Joseph  in  his  procedure.  And  the  fact 
that  one  brought  the  linen,  and  the  other  the  aloes  and 
myrrh,  shows  that  they  evidently  had ‘a  previous  un- 
derstanding. Something  had  detained  him  from  reach- 
ing the  ground  any  sooner.  But  he  was  now  there, 
and  while  they  are  preparing  to  embalm  the  Body,  let 
us  study  this  man  a little  more  closely. 

He  is  Nicodemus.  With  him  we  are  somewhat  ac- 
quainted, for  twice  before  has  he  been  mentioned  in  the 
narratives.  He  is  a Pharisee,  ruler,  master  in  Israel, 
distinguished  foe  learning,  and  high-toned  legal  moral- 
ity. He  was  treated  by  Jesus  as  a man  of  honorable 
character.  Early  in  Jesus’  ministry  he  had  become 
convinced  that  He  was  a Teacher  come  from  God,  felt 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


251 


strongly  drawn  towards  Him,  and  could  not  rest  until 
he  had  had  a conversation  with  Him.  Such,  however, 
was  his  constitutional  timidity,  that  he  could  see  Him 
only  in  secret,  and  at  night.  This  fact  clung  to  His 
name.  He  is  known  as  “the  same  that  came  to  Jesus  by 
night.”  That  deeply  interesting  and  important  conver- 
sation, in  which  Jesus  made  known  to  him  the  great 
truths  of  regeneration,  of  His  own  being  lifted  up  for 
the  salvation  of  man,  and  of  God’s  boundless  love  to 
the  race,  shocked  Hicodemus’  prejudices,  tore  to  shreds 
his  self-made  righteousness,  and  was  a killing  blow  to 
all  his  high  hopes  of  entrance  into  the  Messianic  King- 
dom by  hi^  own  legal  qualifications  and  attainments. 
But  it,  at  the  same  time,  left  upon  his  mind  a lasting 
impression  for  good,  and  yielded  fruit  slow  in  ripening 
but  glorious  when  matured. 

This  conversation  occurred  April  11-18,  A.  D.  27. 
Thirty  months  afterwards,  Oct.  11-18,  A.  D.  29,  he, 
spake  in  the  Sanhedrim  a few  words  for  Jesus.  These 
words  were,  however,  not  an  indication  of  faith,  but  of  a 
sense  of  justice,  interrogative,  rather  than  affirmative, 
and  cautiously  bound  up  in  a general  principle.  (John 
vii,  50,  61.) 

But  the  noble  candor  and  love  of  truth,  which,  on 
both  occasions,  shone  out  in  the  midst  of  hesitancy  and 
fear,  brought  him  out  right  at  the  last.  On  this  great 
day  of  decision,  three  years  after  the  first  interview,  he  ap. 
pears  on  the  right  side.  He  seems  to  have  been  absent  from 
both  sittings  of  the  Council.  But  he  had,  doubtless,  kept 
himself  well-informed  of  all  that  was  going  on.  The  cru- 


252 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


cifixion  scene  recalled  the  night’s  talk  of  three  years 
before.  Here,  he  sees  Jesus  ^‘lifted  up.”  And  his  faith 
recognized  in  Him  crucified,  the  Saviour  typified  by 
the  brazen  serpent,  which  Jesus  had  explained  to  him 
on  that  ever  memorable  night.  He  is  now  thoroughly 
convinced  that  Jesus,  now  in  the  deepest  humiliation, 
is  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  Man,  the  only-begotten  Son 
of  God,  and  God’s  Gift  to  the  world,  that  whosoever  be- 
lieveth  in  Him  might  have  everlasting  life.  He  is  ready 
to  confess  Him.  But  he  is  not  strong  enough  to  act 
alone.  So  soon,  however,  as  he  learns  what  Joseph — a 
man  of  his  own  rank  and  official  station — is  going  to  do, 
he  acts  promptly  in  identifying  himself  with  him.  Then 
the  love  and  homage  of  his  heart  streamed  forth  in  a 
royal  way.  He  had  bought  100  lbs.  (Greek  and  Roman 
weight,  12  oz.  to  the  pound),  of  the  powdered  mixture, 
the  odoriferous  gum,  myrrh,  and  the  sweet-scented  wood, 
aloes.  This  he  now  brought,  with  it  to  embalm  the 
sacred  Body.  An  extraordinary  quantity,  this,  for  that 
purpose.  But  love  asks,  not  how  little,  but  how  much,, 
can  I do.  And  this — like  the  very  costly  ointment  of 
spikenard,  with  which  Mary  anointed  Jesus’  feet, 
against  His  burial — was  an  expression  of  his  deep-toned 
regard  for  Him,  whom  he  now  received  and  confessed 
as  his  own  Saviour,  and  as  the  Christ  of  God. 

Joseph  and  he. at  once  addressed  themselves  to  their 
holy  work. 

To  Jews,  the  hopes  of  the  future  were  closely  connected 
with  the  careful  preservation  of  the  corpse.  They  regard- 
ed the  tomb  as  sacred,  and  attached  great  importance  to 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


263 


embalming.  These  two  men  prepared  this  Body 
the  manner  of  the  Jews  was,”  as  contrasted  with  the 
manner  of  the  Egyptians.  First,  the  bruised  and  muti- 
lated Body  was  washed  clean.  Then  Nicodemus’  costly 
and  spontaneous  offering  was  profusely  spread  over  the 
clean  linen,  and  the  Body  was  wrapped  in  it.  Separate 
bandages  were  prepared  for  the  limbs.  Then  the  head, 
from  which  the  crown  of  thorns  had  been  removed,  was 
vrapped  about  with  a napkin.  (John  xx,  7.)  Then  the 
oving  arms  of  the  two  friends — for  they  had  no  bier — 
1 fted  up  the  sacred  Burden,  and  gently  carried  it  to 
the  tomb. 

At  this  moment,  so  it  seems,  the  faithful  women,  Mary 
Magdalene,  and  Mary,  the  wife  of  Cleophas,  the  mother 
of  James  and  Joses,  came  up.  They  seem  not  to  have 
been  aware  before  that  the  two  men  were  friends.  But 
from  either  actions  or  words,  a relation  of  confidence 
and  friendship  sprang  up  between  the  old  disciples  and 
the  new  friends.  The  women,  sunk  with  dejection, 
slowly  and  sadly  followed  J oseph  and  hficodemiis,  as  they 
conveyed  the  sacred  trust  to  the  tomb.  And  when  they 
reached  a garden,  the  private  grounds  of  Joseph,  they  knew 
that  their  entering  into  it  was  no  intrusion.  The  gai- 
den  was  near  Calvary.  In  it  was  a new  sepulchre,  in 
which  never  yet  was  man  laid.  It  belonged  to  Joseph. 
It,  and  its  owner,  would  be,  in  the  estimation  of  the 
J ews,  forever  disgraced  by  the  interment  in  it  of  One  who 
had  died  the  ^^accursed  death.”  But  in  his  own  estimation 
it  would  be  honored  by  being  the  abode  of  One  whom  he 
now  owned  as  th  Christ  of  Grod.  It  was  on  a height. 


254: 


THii.  HOLY  DEATH. 


It  was  hewn  out  of  a rock,  was  horizontal,  and  was  ap- 
proached by  a horizontal  entrance.  It  was  laxeutos^ 
hewn  smooth.  And  it  had  a stone  door,  called  Golal, 
which  closely  fitted,  and  completely  filled  up,  the  niche 
cut  into  the  rock.  (John  xx,  3.)  When  the  sad  pro- 
cession approached,  the  two  friends  entered  into  the 
tomb,  and  put  the  Body  into  a niche.  The  woman  re- 
mained outside,  ‘‘sitting  over  against  the  sepulchre,  and 
watching  where  and  how  the  Body  was  laid.”  The 
men,  having  deposited  the  Body  in  what  they  supposed 
was  its  last  resting  place,  came  out,  rolled  a great  stone 
against  the  door  of  the  sepulchre,  and  departed.  Hence- 
forth, they  disappear  wholly  from  the  sacred  page.  Of 
Joseph,  nothing  but  what  is  of  the  merest  legendary 
character  is  recorded.  Of  Hicodemus,  we  have  some 
traditions  which  seem  to  be  well  established.  After 
the  resurrection  of  Jesus,  he  was  baptized  by  Peter  and 
John,  was,  because  of  this,  cruelly  beaten  by  the  Jews, 
deposed  from  office,  driven  from  Jerusalem,  reduced 
with  his  family  from  opulence  to  poverty,and  was  received 
and  sheltered  by  his  kinsman,  Gamaliel  till  his  death, 
which,  (if  he  be  the  Nicodemus  Ben  Gorion,  of  the 
Talmud,  was  not  till  after  the  fall  of  Jerusalem),  and 
was  given  by  him  (Gamaliel)  an  honorable  burial  near 
the  tomb  of  the  martyr,  Stephen.  But  though  the  two 
men  drop  out  of  sight,  their  memory  lives  in  the  heart 
of  the  church.  By  this  act  they,  all  unconsciously,  ob- 
tained an  honorable  renown,  and  also,  doubtless,  an  un- 
fading diadem  of  glory  in  heaven. 

They  departed,  leaving  behind  them  the  faithful 


utN)A<nr 

OF  THE 

UMVCHgmr  OF  ILUNOtt 


THE  HOLY  DEATH.  255 

women  who  had  followed  Jesus  from  Galilee.  Both 
affection  and  grief  held  them  fast  at  the  tomb.  They 
had  stood  either  ^^near  by’’  or  ‘^afar  off,”  beholding 
Jesus  while  He  was  on  the  cross.  They  had  followed 
the  Body  to  the  tomb,  and  now  there  they  remain  in 
the  dusk  of  the  evening,  watching,  in  silence  and  sad- 
ness, what  they  must  have  regarded  as  the  final  resting 
place  of  Him  whom  they  honored  as  the  Messiah,  and 
loved  as  their  Saviour  and  Friend.  Words  cannot  des- 
cribe their  dejection  then,  and  during  all  the  black,  heavy 
hours  while  that  great  stone  lay  upon  all  their  crushed 
hopes.  To  them,  all  was  lost.  They,  like  the  rest  of 
the  now  scattered  flesh,  gaze  into  the  starless  future. 
And  here,  where  every  hope  is  buried,  do  they  stay 
until  the  deepening  night  compels  them  to  withdraw. 

The  embalming  which  had  been  done,  was  regarded  as 
a hasty  and  provisional  preservation  of  the  Body.  Hence 
it  was,  perhaps,  also,  that  while  sitting  there  the  women 
agreed  among  themselves  to  complete  the  work  when 
the  Sabbath  was  past.  The  two  Marys  staid  too  late 
at  the  sepulchre  to  make  the  necessary  preparation  be- 
fore the  Sabbath  began.  This  they  made  when  it  was 
past,  i,  ^.,  on  our  Saturday  evening,  after  sunset.  The 
other  women  had  returned  to  the  city,  and  at  once  bought 
(Mark  xvi,  1)  and  prepared  aromata^  s veet  spices,  and 
mura^  ointments  (both  words  are,  except  in  Rev.  xviii, 
13,  used  only  in  connection  with  the  anointing  of  Je- 
sus), to  be  ready,  so  soon  as  the  Sabbath  ended,  to  ful- 
fill the  ceremonial  anointing. 

The  day  of  preparation  was  Friday.  It  closed,  and 


256 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


the  great  Sabbath  began,  at  sunset.  That  was  a day  of 
rest  to  the  friends  of  Jesus:  “they  rested  the  Sabbath 
day,  according  to  the  commandment.”  Not  thus  did 
His  foes”^  They,  on  this  high  day,  deliberately  did 
that  which  they  had  accused  Him,  unjustly,  of  doing. 
They  broke  the  Sabbath  day.  Tortured  by  conscience, 
and  filled  with  hate,  they,  after  it  had  it,  i.  ^.,  the 
Sabbath  had  begun,  called,  and  held,  a meeting  of  the 
Council.  They  were  as  much  disturbed  by  Jesus  dead 
as  they  had  been  by  Jesus  living.  He  had  never  open- 
ly, and  to  strangers,  announced  His  resurrection.  But 
He  had  declared  to  the  Pharisees  that  the  sign  of  the 
prophet  Jonah  would  be  fulfilled  in  Himself.  (Matt, 
xii,  40.)  His  words  to  the  disciples  were,  to  them,  un- 
intelligible,  and,  in  their  present  fright,  were  by  them 
wholly  forgotten.  But  His  foes  had  not  forgotten 
what  He  had  said  to  them,  and  what  they  had  heard 
from  Judas  and  others.  Of  all  this,  the  resurrection  of 
Lazarus  was  a confirmation.  And  if  Jesus  should 
arise,  or  His  Bodj^  be  taken  away,  and  the  report  be 
circulated  that  He  had  arisen,  their  cause  would  receive 
a fatal  blow.  The  thought  struck  them  with  terror. 
The  resurrection  itself  was  a calamity  to  prevent  which 
every  precaution  must  be  taken. 

This  was  the  subject  of  their  consultation  at  that 
session.  They  reached  a conclusion  eminently  satis- 

[*Mattliew  alone  records  the  following  incident:  But  he  was 
acquainted  with  it  personally.  He  wrote  it  in  Jerusalem,  where, 
and  while,  many  must  have  been  living  who  had  contemporane- 
ous knowledge  of  the  fact.  Nor  would  he  have  dared  to  publish 
false  report  of  so  significant  and  notorious  an  event  1 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


257 


factory  to  themselves.  A deputation  of  the  Pharisees 
and  of  the  chief  priests,  headed,  doubtless,  by  Caiaphas, 
went  to  Pilate,  and  told  him  that  they  remembered  that 
Jesus,  whom  they  now  jplanos^  an  imposter,  had  said, 
while  He  was  yet  alive,  that  He  would  rise  again  after 
three  days.  They  intimated  that  His  disciples  would 
steal  the  Body,  and  then  circulate  the  report  that  He 
had  arisen.  This  last  deception  (E.  Y.,  ‘dast  error’’) — 
they  said — i,  ^.,  the  taking  of  the  Body  from  the  tomb, 
and  then  pretending  that  He  had  arisen,  would  have  a 
wider  influence  than  the  flrst,  L ^.,  than  the  pretending 
that  He  was  the  Messiah.  They,  therefore,  requested 
Pilate  to  issue  an  order  for  a guard  to  keep  the  sepul- 
chre secure  until  the  third  day  had  passed — as  if  a Ro- 
man guard  could  make  resurrection  impossible. 

This  whole  action  strongly  suggests  the  idea  that  it 
was  their  intention  to  keep  the  Body  secure  until  the 
third  day,  and  then  exhibit  it  to  the  people  as  the  most 
ample  and  conclusive  proof  that  Jesus  was  an  imposter. 
This  would  thoroughly  confound  His  then  confessedly 
deluded  followers,  and  be  the  most  ample  vindication 
of  their  own  conduct.  And  their  visit  made  upon  Pi- 
late a decided  impression.  He  had  been  deeply  agitated 
already  by  the  saying,  ‘‘He  is  the  Son  of  God,”  and  by 
all  that  he  had  seen  and  heard  of,  and  from,  Jesus.  It 
was  to  his  interest  that  the  ful Ailment  of  the  prophecy  of 
the  resurrection  be  prevented,  if  possible.  He  granted 
the  petition.  “Ye  have,”  i.  I will  give  you,  said  he,  a 
Tcoustoodean — the  military  term  for  a “guard” — a 
watch.  He  placed  a detachment  of  soldiers  at  their 


258 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


disposal,  saying,  ‘‘Secure  the  tomb  in  the  best  manner 
possible.’’  Taking  the  guard  with  them,  they  went  to 
the  tomb.  By  a band  drawn  across  the  stone  at  its 
mouth,  and  sealed  at  both  ends  with  wax,  on  which 
Pilate’s  official  seal  was  stamped,  they  made  the  sepul- 
chre sure.  Then  they  stationed  the  guard  around  it, 
with  strict  injunctions  to  keep  all  intruders  away.  Then 
they  returned  home,  if  not  confident,  at  least  hoping, 
that  the  third  day  would  find  the  tomb  undisturbed. 
Then  would  Jesus  of  Nazareth  be  relegated  to  His  true 
place  among  the  false  Christs  who  had,  from  time  to  ^ 
time,  arisen  to  create  a sensation,  and  had  then  come, 
with  their  cause,  to  an  ignominous  end. 


Thus  ended  the  awful  tragedy  of  Calvary.  Appar- 
ently it  was  the  final  overthrow  of  Jesiis  and  His  cause. 
His  followers,  now  scattered  everywhere,  though  still 
holding  together,  see  no  future  of  promise.  Only  one 
ray  of  light  shoots  across  the  universal  desolation  and 
gloom — and  this  they  did  not  see.  Jesus  had  said,  “the 
Son  of  Man  shall  rise  again  the  third  day”  (Matt,  xvi, 
21) — Jewish  reckoning.  This  day  to  6 P.  M.  would  be 
one  day;  to-morrow  to  6 P.  M.,  two  days.  From 
that  hour  on,  the  time  being  the  third  day,  we  musv 
look  for  the  fulfillment  of  the  prophecy — if  it  is  to.  be 
fulfilled  at  all.  If  this  third  day  passes  by  without 
resurrection,  then  the  only  ray  of  light  will  go  out. 
Jesus’  beauteous  and  beneficent  life  will  be  only  as  a 
dream,  ad  His  gracious  words  only  as  a breath  of  air.  His 


THE  HOLY  DEATH. 


259 


cause  will  then  sink  into  total  oblivion,  and  His  name 
wholly  disappear  from  an>ong  men.  Intermingled,  there- 
fore, with  our  musings — as  we  stand  by  His  tomb — upon 
all  that  has  this  day  occurred,  and  upon  all  the  past  of 
His  life  are  agitations  of  mind,  caused  by  that  intensely 
interesting  and  profoundly  important  question.  Will 
His  prophecy  of  resurrection  become  a reality?  Will 
the  stupendous  fact  occur  which  is  to  wipe  away  the 
dishonor  of  the  grave,  vindicate  His  character  and 
establish  His  claims,  and  give  a glorious  resurrection  to 
His  cause  now  dead?  Time  alone  can  give  the  answer. 
And  for  that  answer  we  must  patiently  wait. 


iw 


